UK: Labour ministers urged to impose stricter regulations on gambling advertising

Labour ministers are facing growing pressure from campaigners, politicians, and football figures to impose stricter regulations on gambling advertising, particularly in sports, to protect vulnerable groups, including children.

At a Westminster summit, former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith, alongside other campaigners, urged the culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, to introduce tighter controls on gambling marketing. The calls come as concerns mount over the influence of gambling ads and the potential harm they cause.

“The public is clear on this, and politicians need to find their way towards the public,” said Duncan Smith, co-chair of a cross-party parliamentary group focused on gambling harms. He advocated for a ban on incentives like “free” bets and called for tighter restrictions on gambling ads in sports, particularly around football.

Duncan Smith

Bookmakers and online casinos spent over £1.5 billion on advertising in 2017, a figure that is believed to have risen significantly. A survey by Survation found strong public support for banning gambling ads altogether, while campaigners push for a pre-9pm watershed ban on betting and casino advertising.

New figures from the Gambling Commission indicate that problem gambling in Great Britain may be affecting up to 2.5% of adults, a significant increase from previous estimates. The new data highlights the urgency of addressing gambling-related harm.

Premier League clubs have agreed to phase out betting sponsors from the front of shirts by the end of next season, but this measure doesn’t cover pitchside hoardings or lower-league clubs. Mark Palios, former chief executive of the Football Association and chair of Tranmere Rovers, questioned the effectiveness of these steps.

“Do they not think that children who support lower league clubs are as important as children who support Premier League clubs?” Palios asked, pointing to the broader influence of gambling sponsorship across all levels of football.

Mark Palios

Lord Foster, chair of Peers for Gambling Reform, criticized the previous government’s failure to address gambling advertising in its recent white paper on regulatory reform, calling the omission “bizarre.” 

Foster said that the Gambling Act gave Labour the power to address this quickly and reform gambling advertising. He noted that curbing gambling ads wouldn’t require primary legislation, making it relatively easy to implement.

The push for tighter restrictions is also backed by GambleAware, the UK’s leading gambling charity, which supports a pre-9 pm ban on gambling ads to reduce exposure to vulnerable groups.

A spokesperson for the Betting & Gaming Council defended the industry's efforts, pointing to initiatives like the “whistle to whistle” ban on gambling ads during live sports broadcasts. However, studies show that betting logos can still appear thousands of times during a Premier League match through other promotional methods like pitchside hoardings.

A government spokesperson acknowledged the harm gambling can cause, adding: "We are absolutely committed to strengthening protections for those at risk.”