Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to protect children against underage gambling.

Protecting children and the vulnerable from being harmed or exploited by gambling is a core objective of the regulation of gambling in Great Britain, and a priority for the government. Operators offering gambling services to people in Great Britain must have a licence from the Gambling Commission and must have effective policies and procedures designed to prevent underage gambling.

The Gambling Commission has a range of powers to act where there is a failure to prevent underage gambling. These include powers to suspend or revoke a licence, impose financial penalties or launch criminal action. The Commission is closely monitoring the convergence between video games and gambling and has shown it will take action and prosecute unlicensed gambling on in-game items such as skins.

The government published a consultation on gaming machines and social responsibility in October. This includes measures to strengthen protections around online gambling and gambling advertising. Gamble Aware will lead a major responsible gambling advertising campaign to ensure parents and children are aware of risks associated with gambling.