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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made for the implications of his policies of reports of gambling operators taking bets over social media and messaging platforms to avoid gambling regulations and social responsibility schemes.

Gambling operators are only allowed to provide facilities in the way their Gambling Commission licence and licence conditions allow. If an operator is able under the terms of its licence to accept bets via a messaging platform or social media, it must abide by all the regulatory controls of its licence. Requirements include the need for checks so it is clear who is placing the bet, systems to identify those at risk of harm, and compliance with GDPR regulations on data collection and retention.