Calls grow for ban on Tube gambling ads

Five London councils are calling on the London mayor to get rid of adverts promoting casinos and gambling websites on the Underground.

Barnet, Brent, Enfield, Hackney, and Lewisham councils have joined the Coalition to End Gambling Ads (CEGA) which campaigns against the spread of harmful gambling promotions.

Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan has been accused of backtracking on his promise to ban the adverts, made in his 2021 re-election manifesto.

In March he said he was waiting for a "formal definition of harmful gambling" to be agreed upon. His office has been approached for comment.

Statistics from the Gambling Commission, which regulates gambling and gaming laws, suggest that there may be over a million people who experience severe negative consequences from someone else's gambling in the UK each year.

Young people are particularly badly affected.

Tracy O'Shaughnessy, from south-west London, from the charity GamLEARN, whose husband was a gambler for more than 30 years said: "I know first-hand how quickly gambling harm tears through a life and a family.

"Seeing London councils push back against gambling advertising really matters - it recognises the reality that this addiction is real, it's destructive, and it shouldn't be promoted on our streets."

Haringey Council was the first council to join the coalition in January 2025, calling for an end to all gambling advertising.

Haringey is fourth only to boroughs Brent, Enfield and Newham, for having the most licensed gambling premises in the capital, according to the Gambling Commission.

More than 80 councils already restrict gambling ads on the spaces they control, but they have little power over privately owned spaces including billboards, transport networks, broadcast media and the internet.

The gambling industry is estimated to spend around £2bn a year on advertising, which the coalition says embeds gambling into everyday culture, exposing millions, including children and young people, to harmful marketing.

Will Prochaska, Director of CEGA said: "It's inspiring to see councils stepping up to protect the health of their populations where national government is still wanting.

"Councils across the UK are recognising that gambling is a public health crisis fuelled by relentless advertising.

"By joining this coalition, they're standing up for their communities and sending a clear message. It's time to stop allowing companies to profit from promoting harmful products. We urge others to follow their lead."

Cllr Chris Kennedy, Hackney Council cabinet member for health, said: "Hackney Council takes a 'health in all policies' approach to everything we do.

"Gambling related harm is well documented but not well recognised as it is often a highly stigmatised form of damage in the lives of some of our most deprived citizens."

Responding to a question by the Greens on the London Assembly in February, the mayor said he hoped the government would provide a "national framework addressing this issue, including providing a national definition of harmful gambling advertising.

"I intend to allow government to conclude this work before looking further at any implications for TfL's policy."