Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made on the potential role of open banking technology in helping to tackle problem online gambling.
Answered by Paul Scully
The government is exploring how technology and data can be harnessed in a number of areas to better prevent harmful gambling online. We are reviewing the Gambling Act 2005 and will publish our white paper in the coming weeks.
Asked by: Carolyn Harris (Labour - Swansea East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether (a) the Gambling Commission and (b) her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of technology such as open banking to remove the need for customers to hand over financial information for affordability checks to multiple online gambling operators.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government and Gambling Commission are exploring how technology and data can be harnessed in a number of areas to better prevent harmful gambling online. We recognise the role that data sharing could play in supporting interventions across multiple operators, as well as the benefits of considering a player’s financial circumstances as part of a rounded assessment of whether they are at risk of harm. The government’s white paper on the Gambling Act Review will be published in the coming weeks.
It is important that any data-driven protections are proportionate, handle data securely, and are implemented in a way that is acceptable to consumers. Officials from the Department and the Commission have therefore met a range of technology providers to understand potential delivery options, including those which may cause less friction in the customer journey such as checks facilitated by open banking.
The Single Customer View project is currently in a pilot stage with GAMSTOP, which operates the national online self-exclusion scheme, as technical provider. This is taking place within the Information Commissioner’s Office regulatory sandbox, and progress will be closely monitored by Government and regulators. There will be ongoing evaluations once data sharing has started. The Gambling Commission’s most recent update surrounding progress and next steps can be found here, and the Information Commissioner’s update on the sandbox can be found here.
Asked by: Carolyn Harris (Labour - Swansea East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government plans to introduce online gambling affordability assessments as part of the gambling white paper, to be conducted independently of the industry.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government and Gambling Commission are exploring how technology and data can be harnessed in a number of areas to better prevent harmful gambling online. We recognise the role that data sharing could play in supporting interventions across multiple operators, as well as the benefits of considering a player’s financial circumstances as part of a rounded assessment of whether they are at risk of harm. The government’s white paper on the Gambling Act Review will be published in the coming weeks.
It is important that any data-driven protections are proportionate, handle data securely, and are implemented in a way that is acceptable to consumers. Officials from the Department and the Commission have therefore met a range of technology providers to understand potential delivery options, including those which may cause less friction in the customer journey such as checks facilitated by open banking.
The Single Customer View project is currently in a pilot stage with GAMSTOP, which operates the national online self-exclusion scheme, as technical provider. This is taking place within the Information Commissioner’s Office regulatory sandbox, and progress will be closely monitored by Government and regulators. There will be ongoing evaluations once data sharing has started. The Gambling Commission’s most recent update surrounding progress and next steps can be found here, and the Information Commissioner’s update on the sandbox can be found here.
Asked by: Viscount Astor (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking in conjunction with the Gambling Commission to prevent unlicensed online gambling.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is reviewing the Gambling Act 2005 to ensure it remains fit for the digital age. As part of its broad scope, the review called for evidence on the size of the black market for gambling in Great Britain and the ease with which consumers could access illegal gambling websites. The report by PwC on unlicensed gambling will be considered as part of the review.
The Gambling Commission assesses information gathered from multiple sources and works closely with partner agencies to prevent access to illegal websites by consumers in Great Britain. If the Commission decides to take action against an illegal operator, it will initially issue a Cease and Desist letter. If this action does not prove successful, it will use disruption techniques, which includes using its relationships with web-hosting companies to suspend or IP-block consumers in Great Britain from accessing websites, contacting payment providers to remove payment services, and liaising with social media sites to prevent websites appearing on search engines or being hosted. The Commission will also use some of the additional income that it is receiving from its recent fees uplift to increase its ability to tackle illegal gambling.
The Commission is aware that some illegal websites are targeted at people who experience significant harms from their gambling and self-excluded gamblers. The Commission is particularly focused on identifying and disrupting these illegal operators.
Asked by: Viscount Astor (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the conclusions of the PricewaterhouseCoopers report Review of unlicensed online gambling in the UK, published on 3 February 2021; in particular, the conclusion that unlicensed gambling has grown to a turnover of £1.4 billion with 460,000 users.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is reviewing the Gambling Act 2005 to ensure it remains fit for the digital age. As part of its broad scope, the review called for evidence on the size of the black market for gambling in Great Britain and the ease with which consumers could access illegal gambling websites. The report by PwC on unlicensed gambling will be considered as part of the review.
The Gambling Commission assesses information gathered from multiple sources and works closely with partner agencies to prevent access to illegal websites by consumers in Great Britain. If the Commission decides to take action against an illegal operator, it will initially issue a Cease and Desist letter. If this action does not prove successful, it will use disruption techniques, which includes using its relationships with web-hosting companies to suspend or IP-block consumers in Great Britain from accessing websites, contacting payment providers to remove payment services, and liaising with social media sites to prevent websites appearing on search engines or being hosted. The Commission will also use some of the additional income that it is receiving from its recent fees uplift to increase its ability to tackle illegal gambling.
The Commission is aware that some illegal websites are targeted at people who experience significant harms from their gambling and self-excluded gamblers. The Commission is particularly focused on identifying and disrupting these illegal operators.
Asked by: Viscount Astor (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the loss of (1) tax revenue, and (2) Horse Racing Levy income, due to illegal online gambling.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
(1) The information requested is not available: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not make an estimate of the amount of revenue lost through illegal online gambling.
HMRC estimates the tax gap[1], the difference between the amount of tax that should, in theory, be paid to HMRC, and what is actually paid. For the tax year 2019 to 2020, the other excise duties tax gap, which includes betting and gaming, cider and perry, spirits-based ready-to-drink beverages and wine duties was £610 million.
(2) The Horserace Betting Levy Board (HBLB)[2] is an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport; and is required to collect a statutory levy, the Horserace Betting Levy. The information requested is not available from HMRC.
[1] Tax gap statistics are available at: Measuring tax gaps - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
[2] Horserace Betting Levy Board has a separate website: https://www.hblb.org.uk/
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how the proposed Single Customer View (CSV) to monitor customer activity of those who use internet betting platforms will be regulated to ensure that gamblers who make a profit are not unjustly registered as problem gamblers; and whether she has had discussions with relevant stakeholders on additional costs that may be caused by SCV to the levy and racing industry.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Gambling Commission has made clear from the outset that the single customer view is only intended to facilitate data sharing for safer gambling purposes. It has worked closely with the Information Commissioner’s Office to understand how a single customer view can be delivered in compliance with all relevant data protection requirements. 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.
We are considering impact at the appropriate stages for all policies in our Gambling White Paper which we will publish in the coming weeks.
Asked by: Carolyn Harris (Labour - Swansea East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of whether gambling advertising is a predictor of at risk and problem gambling in secondary school children.
Answered by Robin Walker
The department have made relationships education compulsory for all primary school pupils, relationships and sex education (RSE) compulsory for all secondary school pupils and health education compulsory for all pupils in state-funded schools from September 2020. Health education includes teaching pupils about the risks associated with gambling and the statutory guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/relationships-education-relationships-and-sex-education-rse-and-health-education.
Under the topic of internet safety and harms, the guidance sets out that young people should be taught about the risks related to online gambling, including the accumulation of debt, how advertising and information is targeted at them and how to be a discerning consumer of information online.
To support schools to deliver this content, the department has produced teacher training modules that are free to download and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/teaching-about-relationships-sex-and-health. The ‘internet safety and harms’ module includes a section on gambling which covers how the industry use advertising to target different demographics.
Other curriculum subjects, such as citizenship, mathematics and computing, can also address online gambling and its dangers. This includes developing young people’s financial literacy and highlighting the dangers of online gambling whilst using digital platforms.
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 - Minister of State (Home Office)
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: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to require schools to provide education on the harms of gambling.
Answered by Robin Walker
We have made relationships education compulsory for all primary schools, relationships and sex education compulsory for all secondary school pupils and health education compulsory for pupils in all state-funded schools. Health education includes teaching pupils about the risks associated with gambling and the statutory guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/relationships-education-relationships-and-sex-education-rse-and-health-education.
The subjects will support all young people in terms of managing risk and making informed decisions, as well as in key aspects such as mental wellbeing and online behaviour. For example, under the topic of internet safety and harms, the guidance sets out that young people should be taught about the risks related to online gambling, including the accumulation of debt, how advertising and information is targeted at them and how to be a discerning consumer of information online.
To support schools to deliver this content, the department has produced teacher training modules. The module on internet safety and harms includes teaching pupils about the risks associated with gambling. A link to the training modules is available on GOV.UK and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak.
Many schools choose to draw on the work of subject associations when selecting resources to deliver these topics. The PSHE Association worked with GambleAware to develop free resources to improve delivery of school-based preventative gambling education.
Other curriculum subjects, such as citizenship, mathematics and computing can also address online gambling and its dangers. This includes developing young people’s financial literacy and highlighting the dangers of online gambling whilst using digital platforms, such as gambling opportunities introduced within computer games and apps.