British Government Takes on Gambling Addiction

British Government Takes on Gambling Addiction
Opinion by Alex Groberman

It appears as though the British government is ready to take a stand against the very serious abuse that comes as a result of gambling addiction. According to multiple reports, the government is working on a series of measures that could be put into effect to limit, if not completely halt, gambling abuse.

One such measure that is being discussed is limiting the allowance of credit cards to pay for gambling. As it stands now, many are spending money that they simply do not have by maxing out their credit. Later, of course, when the losses accumulate and the creditors come calling, these people are left to deal with the ramifications of their addictions.

Another idea currently floating around is halting the advertising by overseas companies. Jeremy Hunt, the Culture Secretary, believes that by doing this the country will be able to get a hold over citizens who seem to be abusing the right to wager -- much to their own detriment.

As it stands now, the country’s fairly lax gambling laws are being exploited by overseas merchants who don’t want to deal with the gambling regulations in their own respective countries.

If any of these ideas were to be put into play, they would essentially supersede many of the laws put in place by the Labour’s 2005 Gambling Act. Many called that particular act a deregulation of the gambling industry that had since had a drastic impact on both gambling addicts and the companies that feed their urge.

Some estimates have as many as one million children being addicted to gambling. On top of that, as much as £2.5 billion has been spent by British consumers on internet and telephone gambling.