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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether (a) gambling operators, (b) the Gambling Commission or (c) his Department has a statutory duty of care for protecting vulnerable people under section 1(c) of the Gambling Act 2005.

The Gambling Act 2005 does not create a statutory duty of care on operators, the Gambling Commission, or the Department. However, the protection of vulnerable people is one of the primary objectives of the Act, permeating many of the provisions such as the duty on the Gambling Commission to promote the licensing objectives, which include the protection of children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling. The Act created an extensive framework for player protection with a statutory basis for the protection of vulnerable people, including through licence revocation and financial penalties. The range of specific and extensive regulatory and licensing measures mean licensees are accountable for player protection failures.