Advertising by online gambling companies needs to be monitored closely according to the Government.

Officials have told the gambling industry that it must set up a new regulatory body to draft a voluntary code for responsible advertising before the Gambling Act 2005 comes into force on September 1st.

The new body will consist of representatives of several existing gambling associations and will be responsible for monitoring the code.

Yet the industry already has various bodies monitoring its activity, including the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). Therefore many are confused as to why another group is needed.

Jeremy Stern, managing director of gambling and promotion compliance experts Promoveritas, said in Marketing Week "There is already an organisation that controls restricted advertising. Why is there the need for another?"

He added that if he were in charge, he would have asked the ASA to monitor the guidelines, which are just that, having no statutory power as yet.

This news comes after the government decided that casinos and other gambling companies would be allowed to advertise on the television as long as they abided by a watershed and complied with social responsibility guidelines.

Gambling firms will not be allowed to advertise on the television before 9pm, and all adverts must also promote a website that advises on responsible gambling. The new laws also prevent gambling companies from putting their logos on merchandise for children, including replica football shirts.

It’s believed that the Prime Minister Gordon Brown is viewing the issue of gambling industry advertising with great caution.

The Scotsman realises that the opposition as well as members of the print media will be paying close attention to the adverts and he wants to control the content of the output as closely as possible.