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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will make an assessment of (a) recent trends in the level of participation in black market gambling in Sweden and (b) the potential implications for his policies of those recent trends.

The government monitors trends and developments in gambling markets in other jurisdictions where they might be relevant for the regulation of gambling in Great Britain, and is aware of reports claiming an increase in gambling participation with unlicensed operators in Sweden. Our Review of the Gambling Act 2005 was launched last month and issues around black market gambling are included in its wide scope. The Review will be evidence led, and we have called for evidence on the extent of the black market and its accessibility to consumers, as well as whether the Gambling Commission has the powers and resources it needs to continue to tackle the black market effectively. We welcome evidence from other jurisdictions.

The Call for Evidence will be open until 31 March 2021, and further details, including how to make a contribution, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-the-gambling-act-2005-terms-of-reference-and-call-for-evidence/review-of-the-gambling-act-2005-terms-of-reference-and-call-for-evidence.