The Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office, and The Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Baroness Twycross) (Lab)
My Lords, this has been an important debate, and I thank the noble Lord, Lord Foster of Bath, for securing it and all noble Lords who took part. I also thank noble Lords from across the House for their kind words.
Let me be clear: this Government are fully committed to ensuring that the protections are robust to shield children and young people from gambling-related harm. Over the past two years, important progress has been made to strengthen protections to reduce the risk of gambling-related harm for young people.
I say in response to the noble Lord, Lord Herbert of South Downs, and the noble Baroness, Lady Fox—and, I hope, with all noble Lords’ support—that we will always follow the evidence in the policy-making process in this area. We know that the digital world moves faster than traditional regulation; this is why we introduced a £2 online slots stake limit for 18 to 24 year-olds—a targeted intervention aimed at young people, who are particularly vulnerable to unaffordable losses. As the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett of Manor Castle, said, harmful gambling appears higher among boys and young men.
The noble Lord, Lord Evans of Rainow, asked about the definition of age. I think we are clear on what categorises children and young people within gambling policy, but I am happy to discuss that with him if he thinks that we do not have it clear enough.
In the land-based sector we have rolled out Think 25, replacing Think 21. We believe that this will minimise underage in-person betting among children, which has remained at about 1% since its introduction. We recently consulted on raising the statutory age limit for category D cash-out slot-style machines from 16 to 18. Legislation will build on the sector’s voluntary commitment to ensure that land-based venues further protect children and young people from gambling-related harm. A response to that consultation will be published in due course.
A number of noble Lords, including the noble Lord, Lord Foster, spoke about the impact and potential impacts of advertising on children and young people. The Government recognise those concerns, which is why we have existing robust protections in place to ensure that advertising does not exacerbate harm among children and young people. The ASA requires that online operators use all available tools to exclude under-18s and vulnerable groups from advertising exposure and, since October 2025, has prohibited influencers with more than 100,000 under-18 followers from promoting gambling, to ensure that it is not marketed as a risk-free lifestyle choice. I hope that will be music to the ears of the noble Lord, Lord Norton of Louth. The Government’s planned social media ban for under-16s will also help to reduce exposure to gambling adverts on social media.
The noble Baroness, Lady Gerada, highlighted issues around illegal gambling, which was also mentioned by a number of other noble Lords. While licensed operators are subject to strict advertising rules, illegal operators present a very different challenge. This is not a matter I take lightly, which is precisely why I personally established the Illegal Gambling Taskforce in January this year and have chaired it. It includes an illegal advertising subgroup. I hosted the most recent meeting of the taskforce last week. By bringing together industry platforms, regulators and the Government, we are collectively identifying ways to clamp down on illegal advertising and ensure that exposure is reduced for young people. I will provide an update on our progress later in the year.
The noble Lords, Lord Foster and Lord Addington, and the noble Baroness, Lady Gerada, raised the question of loot boxes. We recognise the close links between gaming and gambling, especially through loot box mechanics that can imitate gambling. Alongside the independent research on skins gambling that we published last year, we have also commissioned independent research to assess the effectiveness of the industry guidance on loot boxes. We have engaged relevant government departments, regulators and industry to consider the results and will publish the report and set out our next steps in due course.
The noble Lord, Lord Norton, raised a particular point about skins gambling. There are currently no licensed operators that offer skins gambling, meaning that any websites doing so may be operating illegally. The Gambling Commission is clear that, where products amount to illegal gambling, it will take swift action.
The noble Lord, Lord Evans of Rainow, and the noble Baroness, Lady Gerada, talked about evolving products. I absolutely recognise that this is fast-moving. DCMS and the Gambling Commission are working together to understand the market, including evolving products, and monitor developments closely.
The noble Lords, Lord Norton and Lord Addington, raised education and how children might be taught about odds in school. Since 2020, children have been taught about the risks relating to gambling as part of the relationships, sex and health curriculum. The Gambling Commission publishes an annual survey on children’s exposure to and involvement in all types of gambling to help us monitor gambling-related harm.
The noble Baroness, Lady Anelay of St Johns, asked what progress has been made in ratifying the Macolin convention. I am delighted to say that we are making progress with the ratification of the Macolin convention —the Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions. The explanatory memorandum laid by the FCDO is undergoing scrutiny by the Lords International Agreements Committee. Ratifying the convention will demonstrate UK leadership and our commitment to working with international colleagues to tackle match fixing.
The noble Lords, Lord Herbert and Lord Evans, raised points around the importance and financial significance of gambling to horseracing, and the noble Lord, Lord Herbert, in particular, raised financial risk assessments. We support the recent announcement by the Gambling Commission about implementing FRAs for online gambling through a carefully phased approach, working with the sector in an implementation phase. This was a decision for the Gambling Commission, which has met stakeholders throughout the recent pilot process to ensure that implementation is focused on protecting consumers. The Government have encouraged the commission to continue and increase engagement with the gambling industry. Successful implementation is vital, and this requires engagement from all interested parties.
The vast majority of customers will never require an FRA. People who place an occasional bet or even regularly spend hundreds of pounds would be unlikely to need a check. I am happy to meet any Peer to discuss FRAs, as is the Gambling Commission. We can arrange that subsequently. The noble Lord, Lord Herbert, also talked about publishing data and measuring the impact of FRAs. The Government will work with the Gambling Commission to ensure successful implementation. There will be a significant implementation phase that will involve key stakeholders, including the horseracing sector and operators’ implementation groups. I will raise the point about what data can be released with the Gambling Commission. Where it can, we are encouraging it to do so.
The noble Baroness, Lady Fox of Buckley, raised important points about how we need to be proportionate in our response to gambling. I reassure the noble Baroness that we understand the importance of striking the right balance between acting on problem or harmful gambling and ensuring that there are no unintended consequences for those who enjoy a casual bet and do not suffer gambling harm. As I said earlier, we are determined to follow the evidence in how we implement gambling-related policies.
I thank again the noble Lord, Lord Foster, for bringing this important debate before your Lordships’ House. I thank all noble Lords for their thoughtful contributions. Today’s debate has demonstrated our shared determination to protect children and young people from gambling-related harm. We have built a strong foundation over these past two years to ensure that those most at risk, including young people, are protected from gambling harm. We have committed to reviewing a range of selected policy measures through the Gambling Act review evaluation to ensure that they had the intended impact. We also look forward to any future evaluations to understand the impact of our measures and inform future policy-making. We will continue to work closely with the Gambling Commission, the industry, and health and education partners to keep pace with emerging risks and to do everything we can to protect children and young people from gambling harms.