I notice that the government has (finally) produced a White Paper on gambling (27th April), particularly focusing on some of the challenges that have developed with the advent of online gambling. The paper marks the biggest shake-up of regulation in the sector for nearly 20 years.
Doesn’t go far enough
Many are disappointed that there are no further proposals for limiting advertising in sports. Yet reactions have been more mixed with regards to the proposals for affordability checks. These would kick in when an individual loses £1,000 in 24 hours, or £2,000 over 90 days.
Christian charity group, CARE (Christian Action, Research and Education), whilst lamenting the “dither and delay” policy which will continue as the consultation on the White Paper takes place, is very much in favour of affordability checks. Indeed, polling carried out on their behalf on this very topic suggests that 9 in 10 of the UK population back checks on the financially vulnerable.
9 in 10 of the UK population back checks on the financially vulnerable.
Yet, there is also a minority who lament this further reach of the ‘nanny state’. Conservative MP, Philip Davies, for example, has stated: “The Conservative party used to believe in individual freedom and individual responsibility, but that seems to have gone out of the window with these affordability check proposals.” Kate Andrews of The Spectator writes that “The paper is set to usher in huge breaches in privacy at a relatively low threshold.”
Tipping point
Well before the days of internet gambling, I remember as a teenager having a bag of coins and pushing them into the machines which would let the coins build up until the sheer accumulation of them would push some over the edge – a bit like ITV quiz show, Tipping Point. The thrill itself was so compelling that I quickly recognised that this would not be a sensible route to pursue – I didn’t have enough pocket money to waste in that way. Yet it showed me how easy it would be for anyone to get hooked on the excitement of gambling, as, once started, it was difficult to stop until all my coins had been used up.
Yet a handful of coppers and silver coins is absolutely nothing at all compared to the dangers of online gambling. Online slot machines are a particularly high-risk product, associated with large losses. Dr Matt Gaskell, head of the NHS Northern Gambling Service, says, “The biggest health problem is coming from smartphone games that allow people to carry Las Vegas in their pocket. The risks are very different to someone playing the national lottery or playing bingo, and there is little in the white paper addressing this with any urgency.”
For most people, an occasional flutter is fairly harmless, and can be good fun. But some people are more prone to addictive behaviour in this field – and it can be hard to know if you are at risk of addiction until you are already addicted.
The consequences
Some have begun with what was just a flutter, then it has quickly built up to an addiction to regular gambling, causing huge suffering on the part of the gambler and indeed, their whole families. It can lead to job losses, bankruptcy, family breakdown, mental health issues and even suicide.
And indeed, this is not just a problem that affects a tiny number – CARE states that there are an estimated 430,000 adult problem gamblers in the UK, with, terrifyingly, as many as 55,000 adolescents affected.
Clearly this is an issue that needs to be addressed in one way or another.
Safety and freedom
Some say we should simply let adults make their own choices about how they spend their own, hard-earned cash. Many people, Christians included, are particularly worried about state intrusion into personal affairs – at what point does this cross a line that the damage done by interventions is greater than the damage done by the problem itself (think lockdowns, for example)?
Laws can diminish freedom, but, as road safety laws show us, they can also enhance it.
Proverbs 24:11 encourages us to, “Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering towards slaughter.” Do we not have a requirement to help those with addictions of all sorts, especially when they lead to despair and, not infrequently, death?
Laws that make it easy to access gambling, particularly of large amounts, are allowing people to be enticed – led away – to damaging their own lives, as well as those around them. In the end, for society to function, we need simple, helpful laws that allow everyone to go about their lives in safety and freedom. God instituted laws for this very purpose.
Laws can diminish freedom, but, as road safety laws show us, they can also enhance it. There are already affordability checks in place for such things as taking out a mortgage or a credit card. Laws for tighter regulation of accessibility to high stakes gambling have a good chance of bringing freedom from addiction for many.