Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many times gambling websites were visited by government system users in each year since 2015.
Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
This information is not held centrally by the Cabinet Office.
All users are bound by an ICT Acceptable Usage Policy which states that users must not undertake any form of gambling on Cabinet Office IT. Any breach is managed through the Cabinet Office’s disciplinary process.
Asked by: Louie French (Conservative - Old Bexley and Sidcup)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the answer of 5 November to question 85955 on Betting: Excise Duties, if she will list the stakeholders she has met since 4 July 2024.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
DCMS Ministers have had regular meetings with a range of stakeholders about gambling taxation.
Ministerial meetings and engagements are published through quarterly transparency reports on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Louie French (Conservative - Old Bexley and Sidcup)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 November to question 84964 on Gambling, what steps she is taking to ensure that her department uses (a) impartial, and (b) accurate data, and commissions (i) impartial, and (ii) accurate data on gambling harms.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government recognises the importance of using impartial, accurate and up-to-date statistics on gambling behaviour and harms. We are committed to ensuring that policy decisions are guided by the best available evidence from a broad range of reliable sources.
Developing impartial and accurate evidence on gambling-related harms is a key priority for the statutory gambling levy. That is why 20% of funding will be directed towards high-quality, independent research to fill gaps in the evidence base, which will be used to inform policy related to tackling gambling-related harm.
Asked by: Louie French (Conservative - Old Bexley and Sidcup)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the answer of 28 October to question 83435, on Gambling: Taxation, if she will set out a timeline for publishing the Terms of Reference for the Levy Board and Advisory Group.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Department intends to publish the Terms of Reference for the Gambling Levy Programme Board and the Gambling Levy Advisory Group before the end of the year.
Asked by: Louie French (Conservative - Old Bexley and Sidcup)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the answer of 3 November to question 84965 on Gambling, what assessment she has made of the accuracy of the statistical analysis in the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities' report entitled The economic and social cost of harms associated with gambling in England published on 11 January 2023; and if she will exclude it from use within her Department.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The report that the Honourable Member refers to estimates the economic and social costs of gambling-related harm and provides a useful addition to our evidence base. As we have previously set out in a number of gambling-related impact assessments, we recognise that the report has limitations relating to both data availability and methodology, which means that the cost estimates may be under- or over-estimating the true cost of harm. This is true of many reports that try to estimate the cost of harm. However, we continue to consider this report in the context of the wider evidence base, and as such have no plans to exclude it from use in the Department.
Asked by: Neil O'Brien (Conservative - Harborough, Oadby and Wigston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many people have been employed by the (a) Charity Commission and (b) Gambling Commission in each year since 2005.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Information regarding employment levels at the Charity Commission and Gambling Commission is included in each public body’s annual report and accounts. These are published annually on GOV.UK.
The average number of employees in each year since 2005 is detailed in the following table:
Financial Year | Charity Commission Full-Time Equivalent | Gambling Commission Full-Time Equivalent |
2024-2025 | 440 | 416 |
2023-2024 | 471 | 373 |
2022-2023 | 471 | 336 |
2021-2022 | 464 | 310 |
2020-2021 | 418 | 335 |
2019-2020 | 373 | 340 |
2018-2019 | 332 | 342 |
2017-2018 | 301 | 322 |
2016-2017 | 312 | 307 |
2015-2016 | 310 | 290 |
2014-2015 | 319 | 268 |
2013-2014 | 310 | 224 |
2012-2013 | 320 | 211 |
2011-2012 | 375 | 211 |
2010-2011 | 442 | 220 |
2009-2010 | 483 | 230 |
2008-2009 | 488 | 238 |
2007-2008 | 493 | 222 |
2006-2007 | 514 | 175 |
2005-2006 | 540 | 102 |
Asked by: Sarah Coombes (Labour - West Bromwich)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the number of people (a) suffering problem gambling and (b) at risk of problem gambling in the most recent year for which data is available.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is acutely aware of the impact that harmful gambling can have on individuals and their families.
We recognise the importance of using impartial, accurate and up-to-date statistics, in the context of the wider evidence base, to inform policy and regulatory decisions. A number of studies have looked at this issue. This includes the Gambling Commission’s recent Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB) 2024 annual report which highlighted how approximately 2.7% of adults in Great Britain had a score of 8+ on the Problem Gambling Severity Index.
Asked by: Louie French (Conservative - Old Bexley and Sidcup)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has had recent discussions with the Rt hon. Gordon Brown on gambling duties.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Chancellor discusses a variety of issues with stakeholders throughout the year, including the run up to Budget.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 4 November 2025 to Question 85794 on Shops: Planning Permission, whether powers to block unwanted shops would apply to shops that are not otherwise long-term empty.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is introducing a number of powers to block unwanted shops that are not otherwise long-term empty.
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will provide powers for ministers to introduce a licensing scheme for the retail sale of tobacco, vaping, and nicotine products to support legitimate businesses. The scheme will be subject to consultation by the Department of Health and Social Care before regulations are introduced.
Furthermore, we will introduce Cumulative Impact Assessments in gambling licensing, when parliamentary time allows. This will give councils greater control over the number of gambling outlets in their areas, helping to ensure a healthy mix of premises on their high streets.
Wider powers, such as streamlined compulsory purchase orders and community right to buy, will support local control and curation of high streets.
Asked by: Louie French (Conservative - Old Bexley and Sidcup)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 28 October to question 83432 on Betting: Excise Duties, if she will publish a list of the stakeholders who (a) have responded to the consultation, and (b) have met with Ministers as part of the consultation.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government launched a consultation on the tax treatment of remote gambling, which closed on 21 July 2025. Responses are now being analysed and a response to the consultation will be published at Autumn Budget 2025.
As is standard practice the consultation response will include a list of stakeholders who responded to the consultation. As part of HM Treasury’s commitment to transparency details of ministerial meetings with external stakeholders are published and the latest version can be found at the following link:
HM Treasury: ministerial overseas travel and meetings, April to June 2025 - GOV.UK