Last month in The THES...
Sue Fisher called for an immediate end to the deregulation of gambling
Mark Griffiths
Head of psychology
Sue Fisher's plea was timely. Steps particularly need to be taken to counteract adolescent gambling. Research has consistently shown that the younger a child starts to gamble, the more likely they are to develop
problems.
My own measures would include:
The raising of the minimum age of all forms of commercial gambling to 18 years
The imposition of much stricter penalties on retailers who allow children to gamble
The restriction of television gambling advertising until after the 9pm watershed
The creation of a gambling tax levy to provide money for charities that give advice, counselling, treatment and rehabilitation for people with gambling problems and
A single government department (rather than the current three) to oversee all gambling legislation.