Sport: Gambling Advertising

Debate between Paul Blomfield and Stuart Andrew

Wednesday 13th March 2024 Westminster Hall

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Stuart Andrew)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Christopher. I thank the hon. Member for Inverclyde (Ronnie Cowan) for securing this important debate. His SNP colleague, the hon. Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire North (Gavin Newlands), complained that his hon. Friend is pinching part of his constituency; as someone whose entire constituency is to be abolished, I certainly have some sympathy.

In all seriousness, it is important that we are having this debate, which raises the issue at a crucial moment in the Government’s commitment to tackling gambling harms. I thank all those who have contributed for their thoughtful comments. It has been valuable for me to hear the range of perspectives. Indeed, in my time as the gambling Minister I have welcomed the constructive engagement we have had, because I am keen to hear from all sides. I recognise that many people gamble safely, but equally I am always mindful of the families—I think we have all met them—who have gone through some of the most unimaginable pain.

The Government recognise the concerns that many have raised about the presence and impact of gambling advertising in general, and particularly in sport. Gambling advertising clearly remains an issue of vibrant debate, and rightly so. Colleagues have raised it with me directly and in the media since I took on the gambling brief just over a year ago. The debate on advertising encapsulates the balance we are aiming to strike on gambling regulation. We are looking at regulating an innovative and responsible gambling industry on the one hand, and at the duty of the Government to protect children and the wider public from gambling-related harm on the other.

As colleagues have mentioned, developments in technology have undoubtedly led to rapid changes in the gambling landscape. The smartphone era comes with risks and opportunities, so we need to strike the balance between freedom and protection. That is why we committed to a root-and-branch review of gambling legislation. We took an exhaustive look at the best available evidence, including on advertising, as part of our Gambling Act review. The White Paper that we published in April last year captures our vision for the sector, with a robust package of reforms aiming to mitigate the risks of gambling-related harm and seize the opportunities to prevent it as early as possible.

It has been said that we sidestepped the issue of advertising. I think that is slightly unfair. The evidence-led action on advertising forms an important part of that vision. The liberalisation of gambling advertising was one of the major changes introduced in the Gambling Act 2005, and we have undoubtedly witnessed the continual growth of gambling marketing since then. However, it is important to note that we have not seen an increase in gambling participation rates or population gambling harm rates over the same timeframe. Those have remained broadly the same. None the less, I recognise that a parallel change has been the increasingly visible integration of gambling advertising with sport. That is especially relevant to me as the Minister responsible for sport, alongside civil society.

In our Gambling Act review, we considered evidence that gambling brands provided 12% of sport sponsorship revenue. Gambling brands are most strongly present in top-tier football, as has been mentioned, where eight out of 20 premier league teams this season have front-of-shirt gambling sponsors. In fact, gambling sponsors contribute around £45 million a year across the English Football League’s three leagues, and a significantly higher proportion of revenue in the Scottish football leagues, as the hon. Member for Inverclyde mentioned. Gambling sponsorship also represents a significant source of income for sports other than football, with around £80 million in sponsorship revenue.

We know that sponsorship by gambling firms can have a level of impact on gambling behaviour. The Gambling Commission’s consumer journey research shows that seeing sponsorship is a “passive influence” on gambling behaviour, although it is far less influential than winning a significant amount of money or hearing about someone else’s big win. The evidence to date therefore shows that while gambling advertising around sport is widely noticed, it has a background effect when it comes to having an impact on gambling behaviour.

[Paul Blomfield]

I accept that the Minister is making an argument with integrity, but if advertising has such a marginal impact, why does he think the gambling industry spends so much on it?

[Stuart Andrew]

We have had this discussion before. One of the reasons that our White Paper has landed as well as it could do in a challenging policy area is that it has been developed through use of the very best evidence. I will come on to that point later, because I think there is further work to be done in this field.

The industry’s whistle-to-whistle ban has cut the number of pre-9 pm betting adverts to around a quarter of their previous level, as the hon. Member for Barnsley East (Stephanie Peacock) mentioned, and further cut the average number of sports betting adverts seen by children to just 0.3 per week. None the less, we also know that gambling sponsorship is one of the main ways children are exposed to gambling, and that gambling marketing can have a disproportionate impact on those already experiencing gambling harm. That is why the advertising rules have been strengthened since October 2022. Content that has a strong appeal for children, such as that involving top-flight footballers, and that creates a sense of urgency to gamble is banned from appearing in gambling adverts. This measure further protects children and vulnerable adults.

Following on from the gambling White Paper, we are in the process of implementing a comprehensive suite of protections, ranging from action on advertising, products and the way that gambling is provided to prevent gambling-related harms. In line with existing gambling advertising rules, as has already been mentioned, the Premier League’s decision to ban front-of-shirt sponsorship by gambling firms will commence by the end of the 2025-26 season.

I can also confirm that a cross-sport code of conduct for gambling sponsorship has been agreed by a number of the country’s major sports governing bodies, from the Premier League and the English Football League to the British Horseracing Authority, the England and Wales Cricket Board and others. Indeed, the Rugby Football League sought to build in the code’s provisions as part of its renewed agreement with Betfred. This landmark code fulfils a key commitment from the White Paper ahead of schedule, and will bind all domestic sports governing bodies to four core principles. First, all sports will ensure socially responsible promotion. Education and awareness will form a key part of all sports’ marketing activities, including in stadiums.

Building Safety Bill

Debate between Paul Blomfield and Stuart Andrew

Consideration of Lords amendments
Wednesday 20th April 2022 Commons Chamber

[Paul Blomfield (Sheffield Central) (Lab)]

I am grateful to the Minister for giving way. He has, to some degree, covered the concerns that I was going to raise about those people who have exercised the right to manage. Yesterday, in a letter to us, he and the Secretary of State acknowledged that Lords amendment 117 identified a real problem. Frankly, at this stage, a consultation will give very little comfort, but could he try to assure leaseholders in that position by saying how long that consultation will be undertaken and when they might expect some conclusion?

[Stuart Andrew]

I appreciate the hon. Gentleman’s point. I want to ensure that we get the consultation under way as quickly as possible. I accept that people have deeply held concerns, so we will do our best to get that done speedily, but we do need to consult. We need to get the evidence and know exactly what the picture is, in order to know how best to deal with that situation.

Lords amendment 184 inserts a new schedule 8, titled “Remediation costs under qualifying leases”. It sets out the circumstances in which costs cannot be passed on to leaseholders. The Government’s original proposals set out that where the building owner is, or is linked to, the developer or can afford to meet the costs in full, they would be prevented from passing costs on to leaseholders.

It is worth stressing just how wide these proposed protections are. If a building is still linked to the developer, that building owner and the landlord will be liable for the costs associated with non-cladding defects and their leaseholders will pay nothing. If the building owner or landlord is not linked to the developer, but has the wealth to meet the costs in full, their leaseholders will pay nothing. If a leaseholder property is valued at less than £175,000, or £325,000 in London, the leaseholder will pay nothing and, if the leaseholder has already met interim costs that exceed the contributions cap, they will pay nothing.

Based on that “waterfall”, the Government’s assessment is that the vast majority of leaseholders would pay less than the caps and many would pay nothing at all. However, it is important to remember that not all landlords are evil. Where the building owner or landlord is not at fault, where they have no link to the developer who created those defects and they do not have the wealth to meet the remediation costs in full, and only in that situation, we propose that leaseholder contributions towards non-cladding defects can be recovered, subject to the fixed caps.