The majority of the public supports tougher betting restrictions to protect gamblers, a new poll has found.
Research by the Gambling Health Alliance revealed that 57 per cent of gamblers and 63 per cent of non-gamblers support a ban on all betting for under-18s.
Of the 2,094 people polled by Yonder, 56 per cent of gamblers and 66 per cent of non-gamblers favoured a ban on all gambling advertising in or near sports grounds or venues. A similar split supported a £2 limit on online slots.
Devastated lives
Louisa Mason, Gambling Health Alliance Lead, said: “For too long the gambling ecosystem has developed into a powerful mechanism that has the potential to unleash harm and devastate lives.”
Matt Zarb-Cousin, Director of campaign group Clean Up Gambling, added that “public support for gambling reform is overwhelming” and the “Government cannot waste the opportunity this review presents to make it right”.
The research also found that a majority of respondents backed a ban on VIP schemes.
The Government is currently reviewing the Gambling Act 2005. Its call for evidence closes at the end of this month.
‘Terrifying’
Polling was conducted by Yonder from 26 to 28 February 2021, and included a representative sample of 2,094 UK adults.
Of thes, 652 (31 percent) reported they had ‘never gambled’. The remaining 1,442 reported gambling using methods such as: the lottery, sports betting, bingo, casinos, slots, online gambling or scratch cards.
Earlier this month, women shared their harrowing experiences of gambling addiction, as it was revealed that the number of female problem gamblers had risen by a third between 2014 and 2019.
Tamsin Elliot told The Daily Mail how she had spent over £10,000 on gambling sites since last March – gambling while at work, with family, and even during the night. She warned: “You can spend at the click of a button. It’s terrifying, but it doesn’t feel like real money”.
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