UK gambling advertising could lose their celebrity pitchmen (and women) depending on how the general public responds to the government’s new consultation.

On Thursday, the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) and the Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice (BCAP) opened a consultation on “new strengthened rules and guidance for gambling ads to protect children and young people.” Individuals wishing to make their opinion heard – or operators wanting full details on what horrors to expect – can go here. The consultations closes at 5pm on January 22, 2021.

The consultation follows a report by the industry-funded GambleAware charity that suggested gambling advertising may be having greater impact than originally suspected on individuals under 18 years of age as well as adults deemed more vulnerable to gambling problems.

As such, the consultation seeks input on proposals to prohibit gambling and lottery marketing that ‘strongly’ appeals to under-18s. Existing rules prohibit ads that ‘particularly’ appeal to under-18s, so it’s clear operators are facing no end of semantic hair-splitting going forward.