Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will bring forward legislative proposals as part of the Online Harms Bill to tackle online gambling firms making offers to their site users that are harmful, including free loans.

The Online Harms Bill will bring in a regulatory framework for user-to-user services, such as social media and video sharing sites, and search services, such as search engines. Gambling firms are already subject to the specific gambling regulatory regime set out in the 2005 Gambling Act. We are currently reviewing that Act with a focus on ensuring we have the right protections in place to prevent gambling related harm.

All online gambling operators must already be licensed by the Commission and comply with the strict licence conditions including measures to protect children and vulnerable people. Importantly, this includes a range of controls to ensure that all advertising and marketing, including offers, are provided in a socially responsible way. A number of types of gambling operators are similarly prohibited from providing any form of credit. Those who are able to are subject to the stringent restrictions set out in the Gambling Commission’s Social Responsibility Codes.

As part of the Act Review’s broad scope, we are looking closely at the effectiveness of the existing measures. We are considering the evidence carefully and will publish a white paper outlining any conclusions and proposals for reform in the coming months.