Dear supporters,
In the last update, I asked you to write to the Gambling Commission to protest about a law that does not work for us but against us. If you have not already done so – please do it now!
Unless this law is changed, every town and city in the country will be facing the challenge that we are currently undertaking to rid our high street of a 24hr slots arcade. Many have already tried and failed. Indeed, Merkur Slots recently boasted that they have never had an application rejected before.
Time is running out and we have only 4 days to let the government know we want the law changed. The Gambling Act Review is open for submissions until midnight on Wednesday 31 March 2021.
Members of the public can make submissions to this Review, which will then be considered along with representations made by others, including the gambling industry.
Please see the link below for information on making a submission.
All submissions must be in document format (Word or PDF) which should be attached to an email and sent to: gamblingactreview@dcms.gov.uk
I have included another letter template (see below) to help you formulate a response to the gambling commission review and I urge you to do so NOW! Just copy and paste into a word document and attach it to an email. Say if you are writing in a personal or professional capacity and you might want to add if you are a resident of Palmers Green, Enfield or further afield. You don’t need to live in Palmers Green to make this submission. ANY member of the public can do so.
Please share this information with as many people as you can before Wednesday 31st as the deadline is midnight on that day.
This is your way of influencing a change in legislation to enable Local Authorities to take local issues into account when making decisions on gambling premises.
Thanks as always for your wonderful support, which has already prompted a review. See how our campaign has progressed by visiting our Facebook page Stop Palmers Green Merkur Slots and follow us on Twitter @stopPGslots
Let’s now aim for national change and make our voices heard!
Wendy Sands
(See a template letter below which you can edit to make it more personal or use )
To Whom it May Concern,
A vigorous campaign is currently under way to prevent a 24hr Adult Gaming Centre being opened by Merkur Slots in Palmers Green, Enfield. To date the petition has been signed by 4200 residents – this demonstrates the huge strength of feeling in the local community about this issue.
There are many more people now struggling financially, making them more vulnerable to such a venue. We know that gambling is highly addictive. Merkur are keen to play his aspect down, selling their arcades as entertainment centres, rather than what they are, gambling outlets.
In our case, we live in an area that has a large number of growing families. Two schools sandwich the part of our high street in question. Although Merkur are keen to stress that they do not impact on children, neon lights and a highly attractive shop front will attract a child/young adults attention, and seem like an appealing place to enter. It is significant that the NHS is facing a rising tide of gambling related ill health as more betting addicts than ever before are being taken to hospital. Data shows a record number of admissions last year related to gambling addiction, including care for severe mental ill health conditions like psychosis. There has also been a sharp increase in the number of NHS gambling clinics for 13-25 year olds who are suffering from addiction.
We have recently succeeded in getting the council to agree to review the licence that was granted which is a small but significant step forward. The broader issue however is that the current law (Gambling Act 2005) is weighted far too heavily in favour of gambling organisations rather than the local authorities and residents who will be affected the increased Anti-Social Behaviour, the attraction of the venue to vulnerable people (including minors) and the negative impact of such an establishment on efforts to regenerate high streets in future. Councils have very limited powers to prevent the opening of these establishments.
The July 2020 House of Lords Committee report on gambling harm recommended increasing the powers of local authorities in relation to the growth of gambling premises. It noted that the “liberalisation of the regulation of gambling has led to an increased presence of gambling services on the high street” with the gambling industry driving that demand. We must increase the powers of Local Authorities to limit the growth of gambling premises in an area, for example on the basis of objections from the local community and considerations of the character of the locality, in line with the process for licensing premises for alcohol sale.
Our local MP, Bambos Charalambous is fully supporting our campaign. He writes that:
‘ In December 2020 the Government stated that they would seek the views of licensing and local authorities on changes they would like to see to their powers through the Gambling Act Review.
In addition to your own personal views on gambling which you wish to highlight to the review, you could also consider including some of the following key points:
When considering applications from gambling operators Local Authorities should have the power to consider what is good for the community as a whole, in line with the process for licensing of premises for the sale of alcohol;
Licensing and Local Authorities should have increased powers to refuse applications from gambling operators to open gambling premises and should be able to take into account:
That an area already has a concentration of gambling premises;
The general character of the location and the use of nearby buildings;
Strength of opposition in the local community.
That it is the role of locally and democratically elected Councillors to make decisions in the interests of the local community and local economy;
The interests of gambling operators should not be the only significant factor in where gambling premises are located.”
We are insisting that the current law is changed to give local authorities the power to limit the number of gambling premises in any area. And to take note of local objections when deciding whether to approve such a license. We look forward to your immediate response on this issue.
Yours,