This series of posts are aimed at raising the awareness of campaigns from Christian institute, they exist for “the furtherance and promotion of the Christian religion in the United Kingdom” and “the advancement of education”.

The Government is reviewing the Gambling Act 2005. 

The Act greatly reduced restrictions on new casinos opening, lifted the general ban on gambling advertising and formally legalised ‘virtual casino’ machines in betting shops and elsewhere.

In 2004-5, concerned agencies warned that gambling advertising, online gambling and, inevitably, gambling addiction would all increase as a result. Sadly, this has happened, often with tragic consequences. So this review of whether the legislation is fit for purpose is long overdue, but very welcome.

 As part of the process, the Government has issued a call for evidence. This is divided into broad areas such as ‘online protections’, ‘advertising’, and ‘age limits and verification’.

Some questions are quite technical, but each area has a simple catch-all question: “Is there any additional evidence in this area the government should consider?”

Please respond to this call for evidence if you have any relevant evidence that you believe the Government should take into account. This could be based on personal or professional experience that you are willing and able to share.

The call for evidence closes on Wednesday 31 March, and can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-the-gambling-act-2005-terms-of-reference-and-call-for-evidence/review-of-the-gambling-act-2005-terms-of-reference-and-call-for-evidence

The idea that gambling is ‘just a bit of harmless fun’ is a myth. Gambling is addictive and harmful, fuelling crime, poverty and family breakdown.

Please pray that this review will result in the law on gambling being significantly tightened, for the benefit of individuals and society as a whole.