Gambling Operators Told To Maximize Fun and Minimize Harm

The UK has one of the world’s most liberal gambling markets, and in addition to regulated online gambling, the nation also has more than 140 land-based casinos, as well as over 9,000 betting shop, many of which offer fixed odds betting terminals allowing gamblers to bet up to £100 ($157) a spin. The importance afforded the industry is there for all to see, with gambling commercials now a regular feature of prime-time TV, or on plain display at static perimeter boards at some of the country’s biggest sporting events.
Not everyone is happy about the proliferation of gambling in Britain, however, and a public backlash now threatens to curb the industry, unless operators go further in its efforts to maximize the fun elements of the activity, while minimizing the harm. That is a message recently made clear by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC), and speaking this week at the WRB Responsible Gambling conference in London, the organization’s director of regulatory risks and analysis, Matthew Hill, stated that operators should do more to build public trust on the issue of responsible gambling.
In the event such measures are undertaken, Hill has said that Britain’s gambling industry will be “a much sunnier place,” and able to grow without the need for restrictive regulations. On the other hand, failing to act on the matter subsequently risks the government having to impose “constraints on the freedom of responsible adults to make their own decisions”. Highlighting this point, Campaign for Fairer Gambling consultant, Adrian Parkinson, explained:
“There are more than twice as many betting shops in the most deprived areas compared to the least deprived and with FOBTs causing real social harm in those communities. It is no wonder that councils across the country are mobilizing against the Government’s inaction on this issue.”
According to the NHS, the country of 64 million people may have as many as 593,000 problem gamblers, who are in turn more likely to suffer from depression, alcohol abuse, or be involved in criminal activity. Those affected are also concentrated in the 16 to 24-year-old age group, and are predominately male, according to Professor David Forrest from Salford University.