Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will ensure that the results of the gambling industry project to share data being run by GAMSTOP will be published at the end of March 2022.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
In October 2019, the Gambling Commission called on the industry to work together to develop a single customer view which could support interventions across multiple operators to prevent harmful gambling. The Commission has since worked closely with the Information Commissioner’s Office and the industry to progress the work. The project is currently entering a pilot stage with GAMSTOP, which operates the national online self-exclusion scheme, as technical provider.
The Government and the Commission will monitor the progress of the trials closely, and further information will be published in due course. The Gambling Commission’s most recent update surrounding progress and next steps can be found here.
Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will ensure that the single customer view mechanism is (a) undertaken and (b) implemented independently of the gambling industry.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
In October 2019, the Gambling Commission called on the industry to work together to develop a single customer view which could support interventions across multiple operators to prevent harmful gambling. The Commission has since worked closely with the Information Commissioner’s Office and the industry to progress the work. The project is currently entering a pilot stage with GAMSTOP, which operates the national online self-exclusion scheme, as technical provider.
The Government and the Commission will monitor the progress of the trials closely, and further information will be published in due course. The Gambling Commission’s most recent update surrounding progress and next steps can be found here.
Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an estimate of the cost to the public purse each month of gambling related harm.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
Public Health England (PHE)’s evidence review of gambling-related harms estimated that the annual direct cost to the government associated with people who are problem gamblers was approximately £647 million per year, although it was unable to make a direct assessment of the cost of gambling harm specifically. Our Review of the Gambling Act aims to ensure that the protections in place to prevent harm are appropriate and effective for the digital age. It is looking at issues around research as part of its broad scope.
Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the BBC on (a) the cost of TV licences for over 75s and (b) the appropriateness of taking enforcement action, including prosecution, against people who have not paid for a licence.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The future of the over 75 concession, including cost, is now a matter for the BBC following the passage of the Digital Economy Act 2017.
The government remains deeply disappointed with the BBC's decision to restrict the over 75 licence fee concession to only those in receipt of pension credit. We recognise the value of free TV licences for over 75s and believe they should be funded by the BBC.
The BBC also remains responsible for enforcing and administering the TV licence. The BBC must ensure that it supports those affected by its decision on the over 75s concession and we expect it to do so with the utmost sensitivity.