The Conservative peer who oversees the money fund in which the five largest gambling operators in the UK make donations to help tackling problem gambling described British legislation as outdated. According to Peter Chadlington, the local betting sector needs to see tighter regulation imposed because the existing laws and regulations are not fit for their purpose.
As Lord Chadlington told the Financial Times, the Gambling Act of 2005 is not fit to address the significant growth that online gambling has faced over the past ten years. Furthermore, he noted that the fact there had been no research into the gambling-related harm inflicted on individuals, especially on vulnerable and underage ones.
Earlier this year, the local gambling sector has opposed further legislation following the massive reduction of the maximum stake allowed on fixed-odds betting terminals. The implementation of the new rules, under which the maximum stake of the machines was cut from £100 to £2, has been one of the strictest ones in the sector.
A few months after that, in July, the five biggest gambling operators in the UK that currently hold about 60% of the market, made a pledge to donate £100 million in instalments in the period between 2020 and 2023, as well as 1% of their yearly revenues thereafter, to back initiatives that call for responsible gambling.
British Gambling Legislation Not Suitable to Meet Rising Popularity of Online Gambling
In order for the above-mentioned contributions to be managed in the best way possible, a special committee was chaired by Lord Chadlington. The committee, which also included former Sports Minister Tracey Crouch and Liz Ritchie, whose son committed suicide as a result of compulsive gambling, decided to create a charity organisation called Action Against Gambling Harm.
A chief executive, finance director and a board of trustees is set to be appointed by the committee, with the new body set to be independent. Lord Chadlington, however, said that he found the establishment of the fund insufficient. According to him the Gambling Act of 2005 is not fit to serve the best interest of the customers who have been getting much more oriented to online gambling services.
In the twelve months to March 2019, the online gambling operations in the country brought an overall revenue of about £5.3 billion to the industry, which is about 37% of the market. Only a few years ago, in the year to the end of March 2015, the online gambling revenue was worth £1.5 billion. Considering the rapid growth in popularity of online gambling products and services, the amount spent by companies on online gambling advertising had also risen, with a 24% increase to £329 million being registered between 2015 and 2018.
Lord Chadlington also warned that more children get involved in gambling services, especially the ones offered on the Internet, with the intensity and the periods of time getting more and more concerning.
- Author
Daniel Williams
