Campaign backs opposition debate on FOBTs
The Campaign for Fairer Gambling has welcomed Labour’s move to use an opposition day debate in the Commons to press the coalition government for action on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs) – the roulette machines found in betting shops.
The debate, which will take place in the Main Chamber of the House of Commons tomorrow, will concentrate on giving local councils the power to ban high-stakes roulette machines from bookmakers' shops if they pose problems in their communities. There are over 33,000 fixed odds betting terminals machines making £1.5bn each year for the big bookmakers - about half their annual profits.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport consulted on FOBTs in April 2013, and specifically asked for evidence linking FOBTs to problem gambling. The Campaign for Fairer Gambling’s submission to the consultation included two pieces of empirical evidence proving this link.
The first was a piece of secondary research based on the 2007 British Gambling Prevalence Survey, which found that FOBTs have a four-fold association with problem gambling, more than any other gambling activity. The second piece of secondary research, based on the 2010 British Gambling Prevalence Survey, estimated that at least 23% of profits from FOBTs come from people with gambling problems, with a total of 40% when including ‘at risk’ gamblers. It further estimated that revenue from problem gamblers on FOBTs exceeds the combined revenue from problem gamblers on horseracing, dog racing, casino table games, arcade slots, football pools and bingo combined.
Despite the evidence already available, the Government has decided to delay reducing the stakes on FOBTs as it does not want to “pre-empt” research being carried out by the Responsible Gambling Trust (RGT).
Derek Webb, founder of the Campaign for Fairer Gambling, said: “The Government cannot keep waiting to take action until time-consuming research is delivered, especially when the scoping study from the RGT has already revealed that the research will not be FOBT-specific.
“Generally, if a product is suspected of causing harm, it is removed from the market whilst research is carried out to ensure it is not harmful before being made available again. FOBTs are not just suspected of causing harm, there is empirical evidence that proves they are the most addictive form of gambling. The law of the land, the 2005 Gambling Act, requires the prevention of harm to the young and vulnerable as a licencing objective – but bookmakers’ FOBTs are breaching that objective.
“We are very pleased to see that the Labour party is pushing ahead with this issue and putting pressure on the Government to take action sooner rather than later. The Government has enough evidence to justify a precautionary reduction in the maximum stake on FOBTs to £2, in line with all other gaming machines in the UK.”
For more information on the opposition day debate, please click here.
