Asked by: Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to prevent underage access to gambling via loot boxes, skin betting and other third party markets linked to video games.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is committed to ensuring games are enjoyed safely and responsibly by everyone, including children.
Prizes that can be won via loot boxes do not have a monetary value, cannot be cashed-out, and are of value only within the context of the game. They are therefore not legally classified as gambling. However, where products do amount to unlicensed gambling, such as unlicensed skin betting, the Gambling Commission has shown that it will take swift enforcement action. There are currently no licensed gambling operators which offer skin betting.
In July 2023 the video game industry published new loot box principles to improve protections for players. Following a 12-month implementation period, the government commissioned independent academic research to assess the effectiveness of this guidance. We have engaged relevant government departments and regulators to consider the research. We will publish the report and set out our next steps in the near future..
Asked by: Maureen Burke (Labour - Glasgow North East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has considered establishing a dedicated regulator for the video games industry.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government has not considered establishing a dedicated regulator for the video games industry. Video games are already regulated by a number of legislative and voluntary measures, governed by several enforcement bodies.
Video games are regulated with age ratings, which protect children and vulnerable people from inappropriate content. The Government works closely with the Games Rating Authority (GRA) who are designated by Government to ensure games are appropriately rated and include information for buyers on potentially harmful content, for example violence or bad language.
The Online Safety Act, made law on 26 October 2023, applies to online services which allow users to share content and interact with one another. This definition includes some video games, for example those with in-game chat functions. The Act is enforced by Ofcom.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) are responsible for setting and enforcing the UK Advertising Codes; which includes online and in-game advertisements, such as advertising of microtransactions or loot boxes.
Finally, where video game products amount to unlicensed gambling, such as skins gambling, the Gambling Commission has shown it will take strong enforcement action.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
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 safeguard children and young people from gambling, including in later life, through the regulation of advertising, marketing and product design.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
There are already a wide variety of measures in place to protect children and young people from being exposed to gambling advertising, marketing and products.
For example, gambling advertising must not be targeted at children, through ensuring that it does not appear in media created for children or for which children make up 25% or more of the audience. In May last year, we introduced a £2 maximum stake limit on online slots for 18-24 year olds, who can be particularly vulnerable to harms associated with high stakes play. We also welcome the commencement of the Premier League’s ban on front-of-shirt sponsorship by gambling firms by the end of the 2025/26 season.
However, we recognise that children and young people’s exposure to gambling is an important issue. We remain committed to strengthening measures to protect those at risk of gambling harm and will continue to work with industry and gambling harm campaigners. We will also redouble our efforts to work across government and with tech platforms to address illegal gambling advertising, which poses the most risk for children and young people.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent research her Department has conducted on the impact on children of gambling-based mechanics in video games which utilise microtransactions such as loot boxes.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to ensuring games are enjoyed safely and responsibly by everyone and that, where they contain loot boxes, there are appropriate protections in place for players of all ages.
To improve those protections, industry-led guidance was published in 2023 with a 12-month implementation period after which DCMS commissioned independent academic research into its effectiveness. We will publish the research shortly, alongside our next steps.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what comparative assessment her Department has made of (a) loot boxes in video games and (b) gambling products; and what steps she is taking to mitigate potential harms associated with loot box mechanics, particularly for children and young people.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government is committed to ensuring games are enjoyed safely and responsibly by everyone and that, where they contain loot boxes, there are appropriate protections in place.
Prizes that can be won via loot boxes do not have a monetary value, cannot be cashed-out, and are of value only within the context of the game. They are therefore not legally classified as gambling. However, evidence has shown an association between loot boxes and gambling-related harm.
To improve protections in games containing loot boxes, industry-led guidance was published in 2023 with a 12-month implementation period, after which DCMS commissioned independent academic research into its effectiveness. We will publish the research shortly, alongside our next steps.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department provides to schools on gambling-like features in video games, including loot boxes and in-game spending, as part of online safety education.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Statutory relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) supports children and young people to manage risk and make informed decisions in relation to their mental wellbeing and online behaviour.
The updated RSHE statutory guidance is clear that children and young people should be taught the risks relating to online gaming, video game monetisation, scams, fraud and other financial harms, and that gaming can become addictive.
Curriculum content also includes the risks related to online gambling and gambling-like content within gaming, including the accumulation of debt.
The departments online safety guidance covers how to teach about all aspects of internet safety and includes content on gaming and gambling, and can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teaching-online-safety-in-schools.
As with other aspects of the curriculum, schools have flexibility over how they deliver important topics and use their autonomy and local community knowledge to do this.
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 she has made of the potential impact of gambling advertisements on children and young people; and whether she plans to introduce legislative measures to restrict or ban gambling marketing and sponsorship.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
All operators advertising in the UK must comply with robust advertising codes, which are enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) independently of Government. These codes are regularly reviewed and updated and include a wide range of provisions designed to protect children and vulnerable adults from harm.
The Government does not currently have plans to ban gambling advertising. However, we recognise that children and young people’s exposure to gambling advertising is an important issue and we continue to work closely with the gambling industry to further strengthen protections.
We have welcomed the Premier League’s voluntary front of shirt ban on gambling advertisements from next season, which will reduce gambling exposure for children and young people. Additionally, we will redouble our efforts to work cross-government and with tech platforms to address illegal gambling advertising, which poses the most risk for children and young people.
Asked by: Gill German (Labour - Clwyd North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of of surveys by More in Common for the Campaign to End Gambling Advertising showing 70% support tougher curbs on gambling advertising and 27% saying gambling companies should not promote themselves at all; what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the 9pm watershed and other gambling advertising restrictions in protecting children and vulnerable people on television, social media, and digital platforms, in this context; and whether she plans to introduce statutory watershed protections or other measures to reduce exposure and harm.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
We note that More in Common’s recent report “Ending a Losing Streak” provides an overview of the British public’s views regarding gambling advertising, particularly for children and young people. We also note that statistics from the 2025 Young People and Gambling survey demonstrates that the overall proportion of young people who recalled having seen gambling adverts or promotion weekly was consistent with 2024. We consider evidence from a wide range of sources, including the statistics in both reports, when considering the impact of gambling advertising on children and young people.
We are not considering the introduction of a statutory watershed at this time. However, we recognise that children and young people’s exposure to gambling advertising is an important issue and keep all areas of gambling policy under review. We will redouble our efforts to work cross-government and with tech platforms to address illegal gambling advertising, which poses the most risk for children and vulnerable people.
Asked by: Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what action they are taking to ensure that children cannot gamble using virtual currencies.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
All gambling operators offering gambling services to people in Great Britain must have a licence from the Gambling Commission. Licensed online gambling operators must have robust policies and procedures to prevent underage gambling. These measures are highly effective, with very few children able to open an online gambling account with either real or invented identities. There are also currently no licensed operators which allow payment using virtual currencies.
The government will also provide an additional £26 million of funding to the Gambling Commission over the next three years to increase investment, resources and capacity to tackle the illegal market.
Asked by: Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what action they are taking to protect children from gambling advertisements online.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
All gambling operators who advertise in the UK must comply with advertising codes, which are enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) independently of Government. These codes apply across all advertising platforms, and include a wide range of provisions designed to protect children from harm. In addition to rules on content and audience, operators must ensure that gambling advertising is not targeted at children. Earlier this year the Department for Education announced new statutory guidance for relationships and sex education (RSE) and health education, which includes more in depth education about the risks of gambling related harms. We will continue to monitor this area closely and take action where there is evidence to do so.