The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answers on 17th November 2021:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked Her Majesty’s Government:
- what assessment they have made of the report by Bristol University What are the odds? The appeal of gambling adverts to children and young persons on twitter, published on 26 October; and particularly the findings that (1) the majority of gambling advertisements were twice as likely to appeal to children as older adults, and (2) nearly half of children and almost three quarters of young people saw gambling adverts on Twitter almost once per week.
- what assessment they have made of the recommendation from the report by Bristol University What are the odds? The appeal of gambling adverts to children and young persons on twitter, published on 26 October, that there should be an opt-in requirement to receive gambling advertisements on social media.
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay: The Government is carrying out a Review of the Gambling Act 2005 and is looking closely at the evidence regarding the impacts of allowing operators to advertise, including on social media. It will consider the research conducted by Bristol University carefully as part of that Review.
All gambling advertising, wherever it appears, is subject to strict controls on content and placement. Gambling operators advertising online, including on social media, must abide by the advertising codes issued by the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) and the Gambling Commission may take enforcement action against them if they do not. The CAP consulted earlier this year on proposals to strengthen the codes and further limit the presence of gambling adverts for the protection of children and vulnerable people. Changes to safeguard vulnerable adults were announced this summer, and the full outcome is to be announced before the end of the year.
Following work with the Gambling Commission, the industry has also committed to make better use of advertising technology to target adverts away from children on social media. The Gambling Industry Code for Socially Responsible Advertising now requires operators to ensure paid-for advertising is targeted only at those over 25 years old on social media and to age-gate operator YouTube channels and content.
The Government is also looking more broadly at how online advertising is regulated through the Online Advertising Programme, which will be launching a public consultation this year. Our aim is to foster fair, accountable and ethical online advertising that works for individuals, businesses and society as a whole.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked Her Majesty’s Government how many times gambling companies have paid compensation for failing to prevent money laundering when an individual criminally convicted of theft used stolen funds to gamble; and what was the total amount paid by gambling companies in such cases.
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con): The Gambling Commission can fine a gambling operator if a licence condition has been breached. In some circumstances, the Commission may decide to agree a regulatory settlement instead of issuing a fine. While fines are paid to the exchequer, regulatory settlements are divested by the company to third parties. In circumstances where a victim of crime can be identified, for example an employer whose money was stolen by someone who went on to gamble with those funds, the Commission would expect funds to be divested back to the employer.
The information we hold shows that in the last three years, the Commission has required four operators to pay compensation to victims where stolen funds have been used to gamble and an individual has been criminally convicted. The total amount paid by each gambling company is as follows:
- Betway – £5,068,577
- Gamesys – £460,472
- Platinum Gaming – £629,420
- Petfre – £140,000
In addition to these figures, all regulatory actions taken by the Gambling Commission are accessible on their Public Register which may be found at the following link(opens in a new tab).
The Church of England in Parliament 
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