Source: European Parliament
Question for written answer E-001136/2025
to the Commission
Rule 144
Carolina Morace (The Left)
Online gambling is a European problem: we have 27 different sets of regulations and 70 % of betting is on unlicensed sites in the countries where they operate. This fragmentation fuels an illegal market linked to organised crime and pathological gambling, which affects millions of people, particularly the young, who are attracted to it through misleading advertising.
What is more, Malta’s recently adopted Bill 55 prevents the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments against gaming companies registered in that country, creating a free port for the gambling industry and seriously hampering judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters, in breach of the principles of mutual recognition of judicial decisions enshrined in EU law.
In the light of the above:
- 1.Does the Commission plan to propose, in compliance with Article 168 TFEU on the protection of public health, an EU regulatory framework to ban gambling advertising, similar to those for tobacco and alcohol?
- 2.In line with Article 35 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, what measures will it take to combat illegal gambling and protect people from addiction?
- 3.As Bill 55 limits the effectiveness of judicial decisions issued in other Member States, will the Commission open an infringement procedure against Malta?
Submitted: 18.3.2025