Part of a special initiative set to prevent young people from getting addicted to gambling is expected to be released in Aberdeen. The amount of £750,000 has been secured by the Scottish charity organisation Fast Forward to back the major scheme which is to be carried out across the country over the next three years.
The sum was provided by the independent charity organisation GambleAware, which has been working to prevent problem gambling from spreading on the territory of the country and will also include the establishment of a Scottish Gambling Education Hub online.
Kevin Stewart, a Member of Scottish Parliament from Aberdeen Central, has been one of the most proactive campaigners calling for tougher measures to be brought to the local gambling industry. The representative of the Scottish National Party (SNP) has shared his belief that a scheme which specifically targets students and young people in general about the dangers associated with gambling could actually help prevent them from becoming gambling addicts.
As Mr. Stewart told The Press and Journal, the launch of the scheme for the first time ever would be excellent for Aberdeen. According to him, the initiative could bring some comfort to the young people and their parents who have experienced great difficulties and massive debts as a result of problem gambling. He also pledged to do everything he could in order to raise the awareness to the problem of gambling-related harm and how it affects young individuals.
According to the MSP, the funding will bring significant investment to the territory of Scotland, while the city of Aberdeen can be the first one releasing the Fast Forward strategy.
Scottish Players Are among Keenest FOBT Lovers
Scottish players have been known as some of the keenest lovers of controversial fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs). A report released towards the end of 2017 revealed that over 200,000 local residents are currently categorised as gambling addicts or are put at risk of becoming problem gamblers. GambleAware has revealed at the time that the average problem gambler spends about £100 on their addiction on a daily basis.
Then, in February 2018 it became clear that Scottish players lost a total amount exceeding £1 billion on the high-stake gambling machines in the period from 2008 to 2016. Industry data provided by the Campaign for Fairer Gambling showed that gamblers in Scotland lost about £1.1 billion in less than ten years. Reportedly, the largest losses on FOBTs, amounting to £236 million, were generated by gamblers in Glasgow, while FOBTs losses in Edinburgh were estimated at £119 million. The gambling machine players in North Lanarkshire lost about £90 million.
Last month, GamblingAware has revealed its plans to double its annual gambling addiction prevention spending, saying that the total amount which is to be invested in efforts to tackle gambling-related harm would amount to £32 million.
The organisation, which has been the leading charity focused on dealing with problem gambling in the UK for years now, released its new Strategic Delivery Plan for 2018-2020 and reported a significant increase planned to be made in the company’s investments which are set to be implemented across all aspects of the delivery of the National Responsible Gambling Strategy.
- Author
Daniel Williams
