Advertising Standards Authority

Baroness Oppenheim-Barnes Excerpts

Monday 29th June 2015 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Neville-Rolfe]

My Lords, I cannot agree with the noble Baroness. The system works well for all the reasons that the noble Lord, Lord Smith, articulated. We should stick with it and make sure that it continues to improve—which, I understand, is exactly what the Council is trying to do.

[Baroness Oppenheim-Barnes (Con)]

I wonder whether my noble friend would agree—and certainly the noble Lord who is in charge—that gambling is still a big problem. As someone who could easily be on the verge of becoming a compulsive gambler in the middle of the tennis season, I point out that there is an advertisement that says, “If you know whether the person who won the first set is going to win the match, press the button. It’s a free vote and we will pay you if you win”. I can only confess that my finger is starting to itch when they do that. Other people must be in the same position; they must go the whole hog and stay there, losing more money than they possibly can afford. Please would they pay special attention to the gambling advertisements?

[Baroness Neville-Rolfe]

My Lords, the noble Baroness is right. Of course, this is not a matter for the ASA alone. Regulations governing gambling, marketing and advertising are shared with Ofcom and the Gambling Commission. The Government are committed to ensuring that people, particularly the young and vulnerable, continue to be protected from being harmed or exploited by gambling—and also, of course, people in the later stages of life.