Gambling Levy

Ian Murray Excerpts

Tuesday 2nd December 2025 Written Statements

[The Minister for Creative Industries, Media and Arts (Ian Murray)]

I am repeating the following written ministerial statement made today in the other place by my noble Friend, the Minister for Museums, Heritage and Gambling and DCMS Lords Minister, Baroness Twycross:

The statutory levy on gambling operators, which commenced in April 2025, represents a major transformation. The levy will provide, for the first time, independent and sustainable funding for gambling-related harms research, prevention and treatment.

Subject to final checks, this year the statutory levy has raised just under £120 million, which will be ringfenced solely for the use of tackling gambling-related harm. This will support our priority of making sure there is sufficient and sustainable funding in the system for projects and services and to fill the gaps that we know exist in the evidence base and provision of treatment and support. The funding will improve and expand services to new areas, to ensure more people can access the right help when they need it.

In line with the objectives of the statutory levy, funding will be directed in specific proportions for the purposes of research, prevention and treatment of gambling-related harm:

20% will go to UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) for the establishment of a bespoke research programme on gambling. The levy will provide a dedicated and sustainable injection of funding for independently-commissioned research to inform policy and practice. We expect the formal launch of the UKRI Gambling Harms Research Co-ordination Centre to take place in April 2026. A small portion of funding will also be allocated to the Gambling Commission to direct further research in line with its licensing objectives.

30% of funding will go to the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities and the Scottish and Welsh Governments to develop a comprehensive approach to the prevention of gambling-related harm across all three nations of Great Britain. In England, OHID will prioritise the development of an independent, public health approach that recognises the importance of the voluntary sector and local authorities in delivering effective prevention activity.

The remaining 50% of funding will go to NHS England and the Scottish and Welsh Governments to work with providers, including the third sector, to increase access to treatment and support for those experiencing gambling-related harm. This will ensure services are joined up and consistent so that no one is falling through the cracks.

All commissioners are working to establish their respective gambling harms programmes and structures. In England, it is expected that applications for voluntary sector organisations to access levy funding for prevention programmes will open in the new year, with grant funds being accessible from April 2026 in line with the conclusion of GambleAware commissioning. The approach for voluntary sector provision of treatment programmes will be confirmed shortly. It is a priority for all commissioners that those affected by gambling-related harm continue to have access to the help and support they need.

Governance arrangements have been put in place, which will look objectively at how the levy is working and hold commissioners to account. The Gambling Levy Programme Board has been established as the central mechanism for establishment and oversight of the levy to ensure that funding is being spent appropriately and efficiently, and that the system is delivering on its objectives.

The Gambling Levy Advisory Group, has now been renamed the Gambling Levy Delivery Group to reflect its focus on implementation and delivery. This brings together the research, prevention and treatment commissioners at a working level, alongside DCMS and Gambling Commission officials, to facilitate appropriate integration and collaboration between commissioning leads.

Funding decisions will be taken by the appropriate bodies, with scrutiny provided by relevant governance structures. We will also ensure that lived experience voices are informing levy programmes, with further details to be confirmed in due course. Through these governance arrangements, we will continue to review how much the levy is collecting and the distribution of the levy as the evidence base for this grows.

[HCWS1118]