Lords Urge Total Ban On Gambling Advertising
The House of Lords Liaison Committee has told the government that a comprehensive ban on gambling advertising is "the most effective policy option" for reducing gambling harm in Great Britain, and has recommended ministers implement one "as soon as practicable."
The conclusion appears in Gambling Harm: Time For Action, Follow-Up Report, published September 17, 2026 as HL Paper 52. The report follows up on the original Gambling Industry Committee inquiry of July 2020, which first recommended a public health approach to gambling harm. Lord Foster of Bath, a member of that original committee, led the follow-up evidence session held in June 2026.
The committee estimates that between 1.0 million and 1.5 million adults in Great Britain gamble in a way that may be described as problem gambling. It said the harms linked to that range from relationship breakdown and reduced spending on essentials to borrowing money to fund gambling and, in the most severe cases, mental ill health and suicide.
Peers said the gambling industry is "particularly reliant" on a small proportion of higher-spending customers and derives disproportionate profits from people in deprived areas. The report concluded a ban on gambling advertising would reduce demand and participation, and therefore reduce problem gambling, while shrinking rather than growing the sector.
A Fallback If Ministers Reject A Full Ban
If the government does not pursue a comprehensive ban, the committee said there must "at least" be a determined focus on targeted policies to reduce the forms of advertising it considers most likely to cause harm.
It also recommended that, in the absence of a full ban or during any transition period, the regulatory framework for gambling advertising be placed on a statutory footing overseen by the overseen by the Gambling Commission, rather than left to the current partially self-regulatory model.
The committee said the government's stated aims of reducing gambling harm and growing the gambling sector represent "a fundamental tension" that ministers have not resolved. It argued the government has not shown it can pursue both objectives at once and should abandon its goal of encouraging growth in the industry.
Peers were critical of the government's repeated calls for a clearer causal link between advertising and harm before acting, calling this "a fundamental misunderstanding" of how social science evidence can inform policy, and said it sets an unattainable standard of proof that delays action.
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Illegal Market Concerns Rejected As A Blocker
The report acknowledged concerns about the illegal gambling market but said the committee had not received strong evidence that restricting advertising by licensed operators would push customers toward unlicensed betting sites.
It said those concerns should not be used as a reason to avoid addressing harms generated by the licensed sector, alongside continued efforts to tackle illegal operators.
The Gambling Act 2005 liberalised gambling advertising on the basis that gambling should be tolerated but not stimulated.
The committee said Great Britain now has a stronger evidence base on the link between advertising and harm than comparable countries, yet several other jurisdictions have already moved ahead with tighter advertising restrictions.
The report calls on the government to apply a public health approach to gambling advertising and to revise the permissive stance taken by the Gambling Act 2005.
It follows a series of recent tax changes affecting UK operators, and comes as the industry braces for the Chancellor's next Budget, expected next month.
Anyone worried about their gambling can find free, confidential support through the National Gambling Helpline or via GAMSTOP, the UK's self-exclusion scheme.
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