The gambling problem in UK:

About £14.5bn was spent in Great Britain on gambling between October 2017 and September 2018, with the majority spent on online gambling. In September 2018, 8,400 gambling shops were open in UK. Over 400,000 gambling addicts 16 or over exist in UK, as well as over 50,000 addicts who are 11-16 years old. It is now recognised that gambling addiction is similar to substance addictions and activates the same brain pathways as drug and alcohol cravings. About half of all gambling addicts will commit a crime to fund their gambling addiction. Gambling addicts are more likely to commit suicide than those suffering from any other form of addiction and an estimated 12%-29% of them suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Gambling is believed to cause 500 suicides in UK every year, with more than 80,000 people (19% of problem gamblers) having considered suicide in the last year and 20,000 people (4.7% of problem gamblers) having attempted it. Around seven in ten people seeking help for gambling problems report that they are in debt, with a third of those owing £10,000 or more. There is ample evidence that the gambling industry are feeding the flames by spending huge amounts of money on advertising, frequently targeted at children and vulnerable adults, in order to maximise their profits and even create a whole generation of children who will start gambling as they grow older.

The background of gambling advertising in UK:

In 2005 the Gambling Act reduced significantly the previous advertising restrictions, permitting for the first time television advertising for all forms of gambling. Until then, only a few types of gambling such as bingo and National Lottery could be advertised on TV. In 2007 the gambling industry released ‘The Industry Code for Socially Responsible Advertising’, reviewed last in January 2019. This was the gambling industry’s attempt to self-regulate by supplementing the government’s advertising regulations.

According to a 2016 report by the Gambling Commission, there are 430,00 adults aged 16 or over in Great Britain who are problem gamblers (many more men than women, most of them aged 25 to 34), with a further 2 million at risk of addiction. Those experience health problems, relationship breakdown and debt as a result of gambling, and even crime or suicide. Another report by the Gambling Commission in 2019 showed that approximately 350,000 11-16 year olds gamble in England, Scotland and Wales. Of those, approximately 55,000 are classified as problem gamblers (boys more than girls).

Furthermore, it is recognised that gambling, same as other risk behaviours (e.g. alcohol abuse), causes harms even outside of those classified as ‘problem gamblers’. Those harms may affect the gamblers’ family, friends, communities and broader society and also may have long-term consequences. It is also recognised that the full costs to the society are substantial and that not all harms can be measured in monetary terms (e.g. the breakdown of family relationships).

The gambling industry have been steadily increasing their marketing budget with a 56% increase between 2014 and 2018, hitting £1.5bn by that year. Very importantly, the gambling industry have chosen to spend the vast majority (£1.2bn) for online marketing, five times more than on television advertising. While TV advertising is limited to certain time slots, online advertising is happening 24 hours a day.

In comparison to the amounts spent for marketing, the gambling industry have been offering £10m a year voluntarily (less than 0.1% of their annual revenue) to help tackle problem gambling, with discussions about increasing it to £60m over the next five years, as a token of their social responsibility.

Unfortunately, it is obvious that both the advertising laws and the rules set out by the gambling industry’s own Industry Code are ignored by many -perhaps most- gambling companies, time and time again. Such rules clearly state that advertising should not misguide people in believing that gambling improves people’s confidence, stops them feeling lonely, makes them appear tougher or more appealing to others. Both the law and The Industry Code also clearly state that advertising should not target children under 18 or vulnerable adults.

The recent report by GambleAware just published last March showed that 96% of 11-24 year olds surveyed had seen gambling adverts in the last month. It also showed that advertising directly targeted children, young people and vulnerable adults, resulting in “normalising gambling behaviour, creating trust in gambling brands or a fostering a sense of community”. That research concluded that “there are reasonable grounds for concern” and that “regular exposure to gambling promotions can change perceptions and associations of gambling over time and impact the likelihood they will gamble in the future”. In other words, children are learning from a young age that gambling is normal and are therefore a lot more likely to start gambling as they grow up.

It is true that gambling generates considerable tax revenue for the government, provides many jobs in the industry and gives pleasure to some participants. The same could be argued for legalising again advertising for tobacco, or even for illegal substances. Those arguments can not counteract the damage caused by gambling to tens of thousands of addicts, their families and local communities – and rising.

Proposal:

Various MPs and organisations have been calling for action to be taken to tackle gambling addiction and its multiple impacts on the victims, their families and the society. In view of the available evidence it is wrong to continue allowing gambling advertising or to expect the gambling industry to self-regulate. We now live in a world where advertising (particularly online) allows specific targeting of individuals of certain age, social and economic background, interests, hobbies and even subconscious trends. It is time to ban advertising for gambling.

Sources:

Rules for gambling advertisements
By The Advertising Standards Authority
https://www.asa.org.uk/asset/343D6082%2DF5F7%2D4E4B%2D98765C8B5E349879/

“Gambling addiction triggers the same brain areas as drug and alcohol cravings”
By Imperial College London, January 2017
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170103101751.htm

“Measuring gambling-related harms: A framework for action”
By The Gambling Commission, July 2018
https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/PDF/Measuring-gambling-related-harms.pdf

“Gambling behaviour in Great Britain in 2016: Evidence from England, Scotland and Wales.”
By The Gambling Commission, September 2018
https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/PDF/survey-data/Gambling-behaviour-in-Great-Britain-2016.pdf

“Spend on gambling marketing”
By GambleAware, November 2018
https://about.gambleaware.org/media/1857/2018-11-24-gambling-marketing-online-five-times-tv-ad-spend.pdf

“The Industry Code for Socially Responsible Advertising”
By The Industry Group for Responsible Gambling, January 2019
http://igrg.org.uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Gambling-Industry-Code-for-Socially-Responsible-Advertising-5th-Edition.pdf

“UK gambling firms' offer to boost levy branded a bribe”
By Rob Davies, published in The Guardian, June 2019
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/jun/19/top-uk-gambling-firms-offer-increase-voluntary-levy-fund-treatment-problem-gamblers

“Young People and Gambling Survey 2019: A research study among 11-16 year olds in Great Britain”
By The Gambling Commission, October 2019
https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/PDF/Young-People-Gambling-Report-2019.pdf

“Final Synthesis Report: The effect of gambling marketing and advertising on children, young people and vulnerable adults”
By GambleAware, March 2020
https://about.gambleaware.org/media/2160/the-effect-of-gambling-marketing-and-advertising-synthesis-report_final.pdf