The Spanish central government and the regional Government of the Canary Islands have initiated formal discussions to resolve legal discrepancies concerning a new law aimed at enhancing child protection from gambling-related risks.
A bilateral cooperation commission has been established to address concerns surrounding Law 2/2025, which also includes measures to reform public sector employment.
The newly formed working group will be co-led by Ángel Víctor Torres Pérez, Spain’s Minister of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory, and Manuel Domínguez González, the Vice President of the Canary Islands.
Their primary objective is to propose a coordinated approach that improves regulatory consistency between the national and regional legal frameworks, ensuring that measures to protect minors from gambling exposure are applied uniformly and effectively.
This initiative is part of a broader and intensifying effort across Spain to tighten oversight of the gambling industry. The move by the Canary Islands aligns with repeated warnings from Spain’s Ministry of Consumer Affairs about the growing normalization of betting among young audiences.
This heightened regulatory focus comes at a time when Spain has recorded a 20% year-on-year rise in overall gambling activity, a surge that followed the recent reinstatement of welcome bonuses in the market.
Authorities have become increasingly concerned about the exposure of teenagers to gambling through digital platforms.
In recent months, Spanish officials have raised alarms about the role of social media, influencer marketing, and streaming services in blurring the line between what is considered entertainment and what constitutes gambling promotion.
The new commission’s work will be critical in creating a more robust and cohesive regulatory shield to protect vulnerable young people from these emerging risks.
