Gloucestershire taxi boss Hussain Vorajee has welcomed long awaited new laws to control the £14 billion-a-year gambling sector but still wants betting to be subject to the same stringent restrictions as tobacco and alcohol. Reformed addict Mr Vorajee has been involved in high profile campaigns to change the law after gambling away around £1 million over twenty years.
Now in recovery he says he is “hurt and disgusted” that it has taken so long for the Government to bring in what is now regarded as the most comprehensive review of the industry in 15 years. And he says the final proposed measures will do little to empty the 15 to 20 bookies in Gloucestershire that he says are always full of punters.
On Thursday, Ministers unveiled the significantly delayed gambling white paper which outlines a series of measures targeting the rapidly growing online industry initiated in December 2020, the much-postponed review has been supervised by four culture secretaries, six gambling ministers, and three prime ministers, and its official release stalled four times throughout government turmoil and the pandemic.
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It includes an obligation to lower maximum bets, carry out more background checks and pay a new levy to fund research and treatment for problem gambling. Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer described it as a “ gambling White Paper for the digital age.”
But Mr Vorajee, who banned himself from betting shops in the city and successfully campaigned with the likes of former England goalkeeper Peter Shilton to stop fixed-odds terminals with stakes over £2, wants the Government to go further.
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The owner of Adelaide Taxis in Gloucester said: “In some ways I feel hurt and disgusted because it’s taken this much time to implement new changes and have a new gambling act in place. In this time huge numbers have lost their lives and so many families have been destroyed but I feel deeply that this new act may help but I don’t think it will be enough.
“ We campaigned for many years to bring the FOBT machines down to two pound a spin so around 2000 shops shut down across the UK, but I believe there are still 10 000 shops operating in our country. These shops are pushing punters onto their “online platform” and this is sickening.”
He added: “In Gloucester we still have around 15-20 bookmakers and these shops are still full of punters gambling away their money. Moving forwards it’s the advertising that needs to stop just like they did for tobacco and alcohol.
“Until this happens I don’t think this new act will make that much difference. All they are doing is making changes with the platform on how punters can play and perform etc. The advertising is the “ silent killer” and until this stops on our radios, tvs, smartphones, newspapers, magazines etc I don’t feel it’s going to help that much.”
The confirmation of the much-postponed review, which was initiated in December 2020, has been broadly welcomed by the UK’s roughly £14 billion-a-year gambling sector after the long period of uncertainty. Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said it is bringing pre-smartphone regulations into the present day.
Jette Nygaard-Andersen, chief executive officer of Ladbrokes owner Entain, said a number of measures had been “already implemented” by the firm. She said: “The UK Gambling Act Review is an important step towards having a robust regulatory framework that is fit for the digital age and creates a level playing field for all operators. We welcome the clarity that it will bring to the industry and customers.”
Peter Jackson, chief executive of Paddy Power parent firm Flutter, added: “We welcome the publication of the White Paper, which marks a significant moment for the UK gambling sector. We will continue to constructively engage with the Government and Gambling Commission as part of any subsequent industry consultation processes, with a focus on providing support to the minority at risk of gambling harm without interfering disproportionately with the enjoyment of the vast majority.”
The new rules also include new stake limits, of between £2 and £15 a spin, for online slot games. While curbs have been tightened for online formats, some regulations for physical casinos are set to be relaxed, such as increasing the number of machines allowed in venues.
Simon Thomas, executive chairman of the Hippodrome casino in Leicester Square, told the PA news agency: The devil will be in the detail. But the key thing is that we finally have something to work with.
“It has been hanging over our heads for years and we now have far more clarity. It seems like there has been some effort to rebalance the regulations somewhat between online and physical venues which was sorely needed. We have 1,500 customers in our casino at a time but were only able to have 20 machines while regulations had not kept up with growth online at all.”
NHS director for mental health Claire Murdoch said: “The NHS has long called for action to tackle gambling addiction which destroys people’s lives – I have personally heard of countless examples of people bereaved by gambling addiction or who have contemplated suicide – so I am delighted that the Government has committed to tackling this cruel disease.
“While the NHS is treating record numbers, with almost 50% more referrals last year compared to the previous year, it should not be left to the health service to pick up the pieces left behind by a billion-pound industry profiting on vulnerable people, so I fully endorse the statutory levy set out in today’s White Paper and look forward to reading the proposals in detail.”
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