Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the protection afforded by offshore bookmakers to their customers in the UK. [76254]

John Penrose MP; Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Tourism and Heritage): In 2009, this Department reviewed remote gambling regulation in Britain, and found it was not working as well as had been intended. Following a public consultation on 14 July 2011, I announced to Parliament proposals for reforming our regulation. This will mean consistent protection for British consumers as all overseas operators will be subject to the same regulatory standards and requirements as British-based operators, for example in relation to problem gambling, preventing underage play and reporting suspicious betting patterns.