New problem gambling body calls for mandatory levy on online gambling operators
News on 25 Jun 2018
News on 25 Jun 2018
In its latest anti-gambling crusade, the Daily Mail newspaper in the UK reports the formation of a new problem gambling action group titled Gambling With Lives and publicises its demand that government impose a 1 percent mandatory problem gambling levy calculated on gross profits on all UK licensed online gambling operators.
The new body was founded by parents who have experienced loss due to gambling addiction, and founder Liz Ritchie told the Mail that she was motivated following the suicide last year of her 24-year-old son Jack, who was addicted to online gambling.
Ritchie told the newspaper that the levy would be used to fund better treatment for addicts and support for families, and claimed that gambling addicts were up to three times more likely to attempt suicide than those fighting other addictions, and needed better support.
The lobbying group is also calling for a maximum GBP 2 stake for online casino and slot games, and for greater recognition of gambling as a public health issue.
The Mail reiterates its claims based on Gambling Commission statistics that Britain has an estimated 430,000 adult gambling addicts, with 1.57million more said to be ‘at risk’ of developing a real addiction. There are 25,000 11- to 16-year-olds classified as ‘problem gamblers’, with another 36,000 deemed ‘at risk’.
Conservative Party peer Lord Chadlington, who has campaigned for tougher controls for online gambling, said he would support the 1 percent levy to combat what he called a “gambling epidemic” whilst a spokesperson for GamblingAware said the charity would like to see the introduction of a statutory levy, revealing that in 2016 it received just GBP 8 million, which rose to GBP 9 million last year from voluntary contributions from the industry.
In a deal with the previous Labour Government in 2007 operators are asked for a 0.1 percent voluntary contribution.
If government accepted the action group’s 1 percent levy proposal it would generate GBP 138 million based on current industry-wide financial statistics.
