The Lithuanian parliament passed legislation that will require that all gambling advertisements contain warnings regarding issues related to gambling. This law becomes effective July 1 of this year.

The national legislature, the Vilnius Seimas, by an overwhelming majority passed the legislation during its first reading before the parliament. This new legislation gives the Lithuanian Gaming Control Authority the responsibility for determining what content will contain the warning, as well as requires them to set standards for how this determination will be made.

Mykolas Majauskas, one of the sponsors of the bill, explained: “Gambling is not an evil in itself, but as the sector develops, it is important to be able to control the risks involved and minimize the negative consequences.”

While wanting to provide a clear warning to people about the potential risks involved in gambling, he also wanted to make sure that the new law did not do anything to hamper the industry. “There is no need to jam poles into the spokes of the gaming market’s wheels in a way that would pull it off the road, but at least you need to attach reflectors.”