‘Shocking’ says proportion of young people in the UK with problem gambling has more than doubled official data That prompted calls for urgent government intervention.
New figures from the Gambling Commission, which regulates bookmakers, online casinos and the National Lottery, show the number of children classified as having a gambling problem using widely used diagnostic criteria has risen to a shocking 85,000. revealed that.
Nearly one in 10 people report that their family member’s gambling has caused problems at home, while more people say their own habits are leading to poor sleep, missing school and missing homework. did.
Almost a quarter (26%) of young people aged 11 to 17 said they had gambled with their own money in the past year.
The majority placed their bets in legally sanctioned activities, such as seaside arcades, or in informal settings, such as among friends. However, the research found a “significant increase” in the number of young people gambling with licensed bookmakers or using family accounts to place bets online from 2023 onwards.
Overall, the proportion of young people in the UK with problem gambling has more than doubled compared to 2023, from 0.7% to 1.5%, equivalent to around 85,000 children. was revealed by the data. The proportion rose to 1.7% for boys, 1.9% for all children aged 14 to 17 and 3% for young people living in Scotland.
Former Conservative Party leader Iain Duncan Smith said the figures were “alarming” and called on Labor to stop dragging its feet on regulatory reform.
He said: “We have been warning about this for a long time, but the situation is getting worse. Gambling companies are completely out of control and seem to be targeting young people.
Duncan Smith, co-chair of the cross-parliamentary group investigating the harms of gambling, called on Labor to revive and strengthen the previous government’s white paper on gambling regulation, published last year. The white paper has attracted criticism for failing to address gambling advertising and has been shelved since the general election.
Duncan Smith said: “It seems like the government still hasn’t decided what to do. “We hope they will work on it and strengthen the White Paper, which has not gone far enough. This report shows that they cannot afford to sit idle on this issue. If we don’t act now, the situation will get worse.”
Labor has come under intense scrutiny over many of its human and financial links to the gambling sector, but plans to reform the regulation and tax system of the industry, which generates £11bn a year from UK gamblers. Until now, I have kept my mouth shut. Chancellor Rachel Reeves considered, but ultimately rejected, a tax increase on the industry to cover a £22bn funding gap.
The Gambling Commission’s report was based on the internationally recognized DSM-IV methodology, which asked children questions such as whether they gambled to escape problems or whether they spent more money than they wanted to. The results showed that an increasing number of people blamed gambling for gambling late at night or skipping school work. Nearly one in 10 (9%) reported that their family member’s gambling had caused “arguments or tensions” in their household.
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Around 6% said they had gambled on licensed products such as online books that they were not legally allowed to access, up from 4% in 2023. This is believed to be due to adults allowing children to use family accounts, especially boys betting on soccer.
Will Prochaska, head of the Coalition to Eliminate Gambling Advertising (CEGA), said this was “not surprising given that every child in the UK continues to have to see gambling advertising on an almost daily basis”. ” he said.
A spokesperson for industry lobbying group the Gambling and Gambling Council said its members had a “totally zero-tolerance approach to gambling by children”. BGC said most children who gamble do so with friends or at legally licensed arcades, where strict age verification checks are carried out, unlike illegal gambling sites. added.
A government spokesperson said: “We recognize the impact that harmful gambling has on individuals and their families and are committed to strengthening protection for those at risk, including young people.”
“Ministers are currently considering the best available evidence, including the Gambling Commission’s recent statistics and gambling policy generally, and will update in due course.”
