Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what information her Department holds on the Reform Party holding discussions with the Gambling Commission on Crypto Gambling.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Gambling Commission, as the independent regulator for gambling, has responsibility for making decisions around licensing. The Gambling Commission has not been approached or held any discussion with the Reform Party on crypto gambling.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Investigate Europe's report entitled Payment firms handled millions for companies linked to unlicensed gambling network, published on 9 July 2026, whether the payments association is part of the illegal gambling task force.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
We are committed to taking action on the illegal gambling market. Since its launch in January this year, the Illegal Gambling Taskforce has worked with payment providers and other relevant stakeholders to consider the best way to tackle the issue of payments relating to illegal gambling.
We plan to report on the progress made by the Illegal Gambling Taskforce once it has completed its first year, and will consider whether to set out membership of the Taskforce at that point.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Gambling Commission is taking to prevent UK licensed gambling software companies providing games to illegal gambling sites.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Gambling Commission, as the independent regulator for gambling, has responsibility for making decisions around licensing.
As part of its regulatory approach, the Gambling Commission assesses applicants against the statutory licensing objectives and may take compliance and enforcement action where it identifies evidence of breaches of licence conditions or other regulatory requirements. This includes where operators or gambling software licensees are found to be supplying the illegal gambling market.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will publish a list of organisations that have lobbied the Gambling Commission or her Department on the subject of crypto gambling.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
As the Gambling Commission is an independent regulatory body, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport does not hold records of which organisations have lobbied the Commission on any particular topic.
Transparency data for ministerial meetings will be published quarterly in due course.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to prevent gambling operators from using content marketing to reach children and young people.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to prioritising protections for children and young people.
Operators must comply with the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (CAP Code) when advertising online, including when utilising content marketing. This Code is enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) who are independent of Government, and contains a number of rules to ensure that adverts are not of strong appeal to under-18s, and are not targeted at children and young people.
The ASA has power to take action when advertising is in breach of the Code, and can also refer operators to the Gambling Commission for possible regulatory action. ASA ruling outcomes are published online.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with social media and streaming platforms about preventing gambling promotions from reaching under-18s.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
Gambling advertising on social media must adhere to the same standards set for other mediums. Advertising codes require operators to ensure targeting is used responsibly, utilising tools available on platforms to exclude under-18s and other vulnerable groups from exposure wherever possible.
The Government engages with a number of stakeholders, including online platforms, regarding the effectiveness of age restrictions.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking to prevent AI tools from directing UK consumers to black market gambling websites.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government takes the issue of children being directed to illegal gambling sites very seriously.
AI chatbots covered by the Online Safety Act must protect all users from illegal content. We continue to work with a wide range of stakeholders to ensure these rules keep pace with technology and will not hesitate to go further if there is evidence to do so.
The Government is committed to tackling illegal gambling through the Illegal Gambling Taskforce. We will therefore consider examples of chatbots promoting illegal sites to children, in conjunction with other issues, when deciding on the best next steps to increase protections against illegal gambling.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the BBC’s Digbeth development on regional storytelling in the West Midlands.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government wants broadcasters to be more ambitious in growing the TV sector outside London and the South East and commissioning content nationwide, and for British storytelling to reflect the full diversity of people, communities and experiences across the UK. As part of Charter Review we are looking at how we can ensure the BBC’s commissioning, decision-making, and budgets truly reflect and deliver for all nations and regions of the UK.
The BBC expected to open its Digbeth headquarters in Birmingham in 2027, an example of the positive role the BBC is playing in the West Midlands. This is expected to create over 900 jobs and encourage 200 new creative businesses in the region over the next decade.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that a new BBC Charter provides sustainable and stable funding.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
As we consider BBC funding as part of Charter Review, we will look at how we can ensure the funding model is sustainable while also being fair and affordable for households. This will allow the BBC to deliver for all of us, drive growth of the creative industries, nurture talent, create jobs and invest across the whole of the UK. We are looking at a range of options, including how the BBC can operate more efficiently, generate more commercial revenue, and how the licence fee could be reformed. Decisions will be published in due course via the upcoming White Paper.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking in the context of the University of Sheffield’s findings that gambling advertisements during the 2022 FIFA World Cup significantly influenced betting behaviour; and what measures she plans to put in place to ensure adequate protections before the 2026 tournament.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
We consider a wide range of evidence when making policy and regulatory decisions. This includes consideration of Sheffield University’s recent report on World Cup advertising and its impact on gambling behaviour.
All operators advertising in the UK must comply with robust advertising codes. These codes are regularly reviewed and updated. In this context, those include a ban on gambling advertisements during pre-watershed live sports broadcasts lasting from 5 minutes before to 5 minutes after the event itself.
The Government recognises that exposure to gambling advertising is an important issue. We continue to consider a wide range of evidence in this space and will work closely with relevant stakeholders to further strengthen protections. This includes our recent announcement of an intention to consult on banning sports sponsorship by unlicensed gambling operators.