Gambling industry reports £14.3 billion earnings as problem gambling continues

The gambling industry has reported earnings of £14.3 billion for the 2019-20 financial year – an increase of four per cent.

Over 300,000 people in the UK can be classified as ‘problem gamblers’, according to the Gambling Commission.

The Commission has revealed that overall online gambling increased by three per cent in 2020.

Review

Consultant psychiatrist Dr Niall Campbell said the prevalence of online gambling during lockdown made it “incredibly easy to ‘gamble on the go’ on smartphone apps or laptops or iPads 24 hours a day.”

Last year, the Government launched its review of gambling law, the largest into the advertising and running of the industry since the introduction of the 2005 Gambling Act.

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden called the Gambling Act “an analogue law in a digital age” and said the review “will ensure we are tackling problem gambling in all its forms to protect children and vulnerable people”.