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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to protect children from gambling adverts and marketing.

There are strict controls on the content of all gambling advertisements, including television adverts and online. Gambling operators who advertise in the UK must comply with the advertising codes, which ensure gambling advertising does not target or appeal to children or young people. The Gambling Commission works closely with the Advertising Standards Authority and has recently consulted on expanding the sanctions available if codes are breached.

We considered advertising as part of our Review of Gaming Machines and Social Responsibility. The response was published on 17 May. The Review looked at protections around gambling advertising and set out a package of initiatives to strengthen protections further, including forthcoming guidance from the Committees of Advertising Practice (CAP) on protecting children and young people. It also recognised that there were gaps in the evidence available, and proposed measures to fill these, including significant research commissioned by GambleAware into the impact of gambling advertising on children, young people and those vulnerable to harm.