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Brigid Simmons, the boss of the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), has called for the UK Government to do more to protect the retail gambling industry in the country, including high-street bookmakers and brick-and-mortar casino venues. The authorities have already allowed the abovementioned establishments to resume operations as part of the eased social distancing measures associated with the coronavirus pandemic. In England, casinos were officially allowed to reopen on August 15th. The Betting and Gaming Council welcomed the decision as good news. Casino venues in Scotland and Wales, on the…

Justice Minister Helen McEntee shared that the establishment of a special gambling body to regulate the €8-billion gambling industry in Ireland would hardly happen until at least 2021. Early in 2019, the Cabinet gave the green light to a plan aimed at the establishment of a gambling industry watchdog. At the time, the authorities also published the Gaming and Lotteries (Amendment) Bill that was aimed at providing the long-awaited modernisation of the country’s gambling legislation dating back to 1956. At the time when the announcement was made, the Cabinet gave…

The customers of one of the largest banks in the UK – Barclays – who opt to cease their spending on gambling services are set to receive 72 hours before they can decide otherwise. The so-called cooling-off period will be enabled to give them a chance to reconsider their gambling spending before getting back to the habit with little or no time to think about the risks associated with it. Barclays’ banking feature as part of which gambling transactions can be banned is aimed at helping customers take better control…

The ACT Greens are set to unveil a network of clubs that do not offer poker machines in Canberra. The move will come as part of an extensive package aimed at reducing the dependence of the community clubs on pokie-generated revenue. For the time being, poker machine clubs play a significant role in Canberra, as so-called pokies are responsible for generating a considerable part of the clubs’ revenue. Under the newly-unveiled plan of the ACT Greens, a range of support initiatives is set to be offered so that local clubs…

The communities minister of Northern Ireland – Caral Ni Chuilin – has made a promise to make a legislative effort and bring a piece of legislation to the Assembly in order to ensure better regulation of the online gambling sector in the country. According to Minister Ni Chuilin, the measures aimed at regulating online gambling in Northern Ireland must be taken to another level and become more effective. The communities minister explained that she intends to bring new legislation drafts before the Assembly before the end of her current mandate…

An Australian resident, whose son took his own life after going through a 13-hour-long binge on the slots, insists on the introduction of gaming marshals across all gambling venues in New South Wales that offer such games. The accident occurred in 2018 after the woman’s son played the slots at the Dee Why RSL gaming club, located nearby Sydney, Australia. As a result, the venue was penalised with a AU$200,000 fine. It was also ordered to hire a full-time gaming marshal to oversee the gamblers on the gaming floor. Additionally,…

The British online and landbased gaming regulator, the UK Gambling Commission, completed a public consultation that tackled the design and in-game features of the virtual slots, offered by its licensees. Launched in early July, the regulatory body’s initiative sought to collect more comprehensive feedback and data on the preventive measures regarding the harms associated with online slots. The initiative aims to preserve the integrity of the games’ development as well as to render them less harmful to the general public. The British gambling watchdog conducted a detailed analysis of virtual…

GambleAware, the independent British problem gambling organisation, announced today it has sealed two new partnerships in preparation for its next Bet Regret initiative. The problem gambling organisation has recruited MAN v FAT, a weight loss portal, exclusively dedicated to helping overweight males to shed the extra pounds and return to a healthy weight. The portal was launched in 2014 by publisher and author Andrew Shanahan. It has received massive waves of support from various public figures and associations, including the British Dietetic Association and the world-renowned chef and restaurateur Jamie…

The authorities of Victoria’s Whittlesea City are demanding from the pokie machine industry to introduce changes before gambling venues relaunch their services. The demand comes after a recent report came to light, revealing that Whittlesea City is one of the state leaders in terms of pokie machine losses. According to the report, the city is home to four out of ten gambling venues that top the list for pokie losses. Pokie venues across the state of Victoria were forced to temporarily shut down their operations in April as a preventive…

A 50-year-old woman from Scotland stood before the Dundee Sheriff Court yesterday on charges of stealing over £6,000 from her mother’s savings to fund her problem gambling. The woman by the name of Lynne Cree took the bank card of her mother and used the available funds to chase her gambling losses. The 82-year-old pensioner was floored when she found out she had only £80 left in her account. The Dundee Sheriff Court, where the case was seen, was told Cree had no choice but to move in with her…