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A group of UK lawmakers has called for another review of the Gambling Act and a review of current gambling advertising regulations.
Layla Moran MP, the Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee and a member of the Liberal Democrats, the third largest political party in the UK, made the recommendations in a letter sent to the Minister for Public Health and Prevention, Ashley Dalton MP.
In the letter dated May 7, Moran calls on the government to “increase the focus on prevention” and move towards a “public health-focused response”.
“We believe that the government should review the Gambling Act to ensure that the current legislative framework gives all agencies the power and responsibilities needed to deliver a total system response,” she wrote.
The committee, whose cross-party members include Labour Party and Conservative Party MPs, also wants the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) to work with the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) to review gambling advertising, promotion and sponsorship regulations.
“This should focus on identifying interventions to reduce the visibility and accessibility of adverts for more dangerous products, and adverts aimed at children and other vulnerable people,” the letter states.
A review should look at limiting advertising before the watershed (9pm), strengthen rules on banning elements designed to appeal to children and young people, strengthening rules on sport sponsorships, limiting promotions and incentives, as well as aligning social media advertising with the broader regulatory approach to other forms of advertising, according to the committee.
The letter was written in response to the evidence session that the committee held on gambling-related harms on April 2, and a meeting between some committee members and the charity Gambling with Lives on April 22.
What Next?
The committee is unlikely to see the recommendation for another Gambling Act review accepted by the government, as there is no indication it wants to address the matter so soon after the last review.
However, there is still political and social pressure in the UK to address gambling advertising and sports sponsorship beyond this letter.
Although it's unlikely the advertising-related recommendations will be accepted in full by the government, it is further evidence of cross-party political support for further advertising restrictions.
Baroness Twycross, the UK minister for gambling, recently acknowledged that gambling advertising is a “key advantage licensed operators have” during her speech at the Betting and Gaming Council’s (BGC) annual general meeting on February 27.
However, she also said there are people who “feel inundated with gambling ads when watching sport”, and that it can have a larger impact on those already experiencing harm, children and young people.”
Twycross called for a “robust assessment” of the impact of advertising and sports sponsorships.
