Damian Collins appointed Online Safety Minister at DCMS

Upon the announcement of his new position on July 8, Collins has been charged with overseeing the delivery of the UK’s Online Safety Bill. 

The bill is said to be in the final stages of completion, and the Government hopes to get the bill passed in the House of Commons before the summer recess. 

Collins said: “I’m honoured to have been appointed to serve as Online Safety Minister at the DCMS. After my work on these issues over the years, I’m looking forward to taking the UK’s world-leading Online Safety Bill through its remaining stages in the House of Commons before the summer recess.” 

Collins’ appointment has been praised by the Betting and Gaming Council CEO, Michael Dugher, in a statement released on Twitter. 

He said: “Many congratulations to Damian Collins on his appointment as Minister at DCMS. Highly rated and respected, and thoroughly well-deserved. 

“Someone who actually knows something about his brief too – whatever is the world coming to?!” 

Dugher’s appraisal of Collins’ appointment follows the resignation of Chris Philp as the UK’s Gambling Minister. 

The publication of the Government’s White Paper was imminent until last week when Philp’s resignation threw the publication of the report into doubt. 

Philp’s resignation was in line with that of a string of other ministers, who stood down to put pressure on under-fire Prime Minister, Boris Johnson. 

Johnson has since resigned and the timing of the White Paper’s release is now entirely unknown, although it is with No. 10 Downing Street, according to Philp.

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Louis Thompsett

Gambling Writer

Louis Thompsett is a journalist and editor who served as a Staff Writer at Gambling Insider from February 2022 to April 2023, covering key developments across the global gambling, sports betting and iGaming sectors. During his time with the publication, he reported on regulatory updates, operator strategy, technological innovation and market trends, contributing both news coverage and in-depth editorial features for Gambling Insider and its associated titles.

Louis later advanced into senior editorial roles and now works as Editor-in-Chief of FinTech Magazine and InsurTech Digital, where he oversees content strategy and reporting for a global B2B audience across financial and technology sectors.

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