Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, for what reason the Gambling Commission allocated funding to NIESR to undertake a study of the Benefits and Costs of Gambling-Related Harm.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Gambling Commission does not commission projects but instead assesses any proposals that it receives. Regulatory settlements are a possible outcome of Gambling Commission enforcement action, and this may include the operator paying a financial amount for socially responsible purposes. When this occurs, the Commission may approve the destination of the financial element against set criteria, including that proposals must be for socially responsible purposes which address gambling related harms or other licensing objectives. More information on this process and destinations is available at the Commission website.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support students who have online problem gambling issues.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
A variety of initiatives are in place across the gambling regulatory framework, health services, and the educational curriculum to protect young people, and the wider public, from harmful gambling and to raise awareness of its risks.
The Gambling Commission requires all gambling operators to make information available to customers on how to gamble safely and how to access information on problem gambling and the support available. Most operators direct people to the charity GambleAware’s begambleaware.org site, which contains a wide range of information for everyone on risks, as well as links to advice and support, including the 24-hour National Gambling Helpline. The NHS webpage 'Help for problem gambling' also covers common indicators which suggest that people may be experiencing harmful gambling, as well as advice and links to treatment services.
In addition, support is provided specifically for children and young people. To prevent children and young people from suffering gambling-related harm later in life, since 2020 children have been taught about the risks relating to gambling, including the accumulation of debt, as part of the statutory Relationships, Sex and Health Education curriculum in England. The Young Gamers and Gamblers Education Trust charity provides free training for university staff and students’ unions and maintains a bespoke student website dedicated to help protect university students and young people from gambling harm.
In 2019, DCMS secured a commitment from industry to contribute £100 million over four years to problem gambling treatment. NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) are also continuing work to improve and expand specialist treatment services, with up to 15 new NHS clinics set to open by 2023/24.
His Majesty’s Government is closely considering the protections in place for children and young adults as part of the scope of its wide-ranging Review of the Gambling Act to ensure they are fit for the digital age. A White Paper setting out our next steps and proposals for reform will be published in the coming weeks.
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Public Health England's Gambling-related harms evidence review: the economic and social cost of harms, whether her Department has received representation from the Gambling Commission on that review's findings, including on suicides associated with problem gambling.
Answered by Paul Scully
DCMS officials have regular discussions with the Gambling Commission on a range of issues relating to gambling regulation and the evidence on gambling. The Commission has given the Department no formal advice relating to the findings and estimates in Public Health England’s (PHE) evidence review on gambling related harm. The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities is reviewing the evidence published in the PHE’s review of the social and economic costs of gambling, and plans to publish an update.
Protecting people from gambling harms remains a priority for the government and the Gambling Commission, and we will be led by the best evidence to ensure the right protections are in place.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, on what date the Gambling Commission advised her Department of its opinion that Public Health England’s cost estimates associated with harmful gambling were unreliable.
Answered by Damian Collins
DCMS officials have regular discussions with the Gambling Commission on a range of issues relating to gambling regulation and the evidence on gambling. The Commission has given the Department no formal advice or notification relating to the cost estimates in Public Health England’s evidence review on gambling related harm.
Protecting people from gambling harms remains a priority for the government and the Gambling Commission, and we will be led by the best evidence to ensure the right protections are in place.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport regarding support and specialist treatment services available for those with gambling addictions.
Answered by Maggie Throup
Ministers have held discussions on the Review of the Gambling Act 2005 and on support and specialist treatment services available for those experiencing gambling-related harm.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to review the use of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 for cases involving crime associated with gambling-related harms.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
We have no plans to review the use of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 for cases involving crime associated with gambling-related harms.
The Gambling Commission will continue to advise on the practical application of primary and secondary legislation to prevent gambling harm, and will continue to work with the Home Office and the rest of government to implement the Economic Crime Plan, the National Strategic Assessment and the Suspicious Activity Reports Transformation programme.
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the report by Public Health England entitled Gambling-related harms evidence review: the economic and social cost of harms, published in September 2021, if she will make an assessment of the whether Public Health England conducted methodologically robust research when it estimated that there was a £1.27 billion annual economic burden of harmful gambling.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
Public Health England (PHE)’s evidence review on gambling-related harms estimated the annual cost of harmful gambling to society to be between £841 million and £2.2 billion, or approximately £1.27 billion, however the lack of quantitative causal evidence for some of the harms described did not allow PHE to make a direct assessment of the cost of gambling harm specifically. While the review acknowledged that further research is needed to determine costs attributable directly to gambling-related harm rather than those associated with people who are problem or at-risk gamblers, it is the most comprehensive review of the evidence on gambling-related harm and its associated costs, and has been carefully considered as an important input to our Review of the Gambling Act 2005. We will publish our white paper in the coming weeks.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for introducing a mandatory levy on gambling firms to help fund an expansion of treatment and support services for those experiencing gambling related harm.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government’s Review of the Gambling Act called for evidence on how best to recoup the regulatory and societal costs of problem gambling. We will publish a white paper setting out our conclusions and vision for the sector in due course.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
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 of the effectiveness of existing legislation on gambling in protecting those at risk from gambling-related harm.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government is conducting a wide-ranging and evidence-led Review of the Gambling Act 2005 to make sure that the regulation of gambling is fit for the digital age. This includes ensuring we have the right protections in place to prevent vulnerable people from being harmed or exploited. We are considering the evidence carefully and will publish a White Paper in the coming weeks.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government's policy on tackling gambling-related harm considers the public health implications of that harm.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government considers gambling-related harm to be a public health issue. As such, gambling legislation and the requirements placed on operators by the independent regulator, the Gambling Commission, are intended to offer a wide range of protections for the population as a whole as well as more targeted interventions for those experiencing harm from their gambling.
Our wide-ranging Review of the Gambling Act 2005 aims to ensure that the protections in place to prevent harm are appropriate and effective for the digital age.