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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department is taking steps to help (a) mitigate the risks associated with loot boxes in video games and (b) increase awareness of the potential dangers associated with gambling for younger users.

Following the Government response to the call for evidence on loot boxes in video games, the Government has welcomed new industry-led guidance to improve protections for players.

We are now working closely with the industry and academics to ensure robust evaluation of implementation and the efficacy of new measures in meeting the Government’s objectives that:

• purchases of loot boxes should be unavailable to all children and young people unless and until they are enabled by a parent or guardian; and,

• all players should have access to and be aware of spending controls and transparent information to support safe and responsible gaming.

We will provide an update following the 12-month implementation period and independent academic scrutiny of the guidance's implementation and efficacy.