BRIT GAMBLING PREVALENCE STUDY OUT THIS WEEK
Mainstream media expect UK government to come under pressure on supercasino
Many of Britain's mainstream newspapers carried news over the weekend of the imminent release of the UK Gambling Commission's "Gambling Prevalence" study. Leaked excerpts from the report, due for release Wednesday, and speculation on its full content has already been the subject of extensive reportage in mainstream media.
The Telegraph opined that as a result of the problem gambling statistics believed to be in the report prime minister Gordon Brown is likely to come under pressure to rule out any chance of a land super-casino being built.
The newspaper goes on to claim that the Gambling Prevalence Study is likely to show that "almost a million gamblers have a severe addiction." This compares with the last study, commissioned by the Gaming Board in 1999, which found that about 300 000 gamblers had a "problem". The difference between "severe addiction" and "problem" is not detailed.
The Telegraph speculates that the report will disclose that 33 million adults, or 72 percent of the UK population, gambled in some form. Presumably this figure, if accurate, reflects all forms of gambling such as lotteries, football pools, horse-racing and the like.
UK ministers have already commissioned another prevalence study in three years, as concern about problem gambling grows, the article reveals without giving a source.
Since that first study in 1999, there has been no material increase in the number of casinos, and a small decline in the numbers of bingo halls, the article continues. Yet the opportunities to gamble have increased tenfold, particularly with the introduction of online betting, and a sharp rise in the number of touch-screen roulette games, in which punters can bet up to GBP 300 a minute.
Prime minister Brown let it be known that he disproves of gambling when he levied a surprise GBP 100 million tax on casinos in his last Budget as Chancellor in March this year.
Soon afterwards, plans for 17 casinos were thrown out by Parliament, and Brown then ordered a review of plans for a super casino in Manchester.
With differing "leaked" statistics in various newspapers, it is clear there is still some confusion over the exact content or interpretation of the study.
The Independent reported that: "Gambling addiction in the UK has more than doubled in recent years with up to 600 000 people hooked, new figures are expected to reveal."
The newspaper goes on to inform that details of the report are being kept secret until its official release on Wednesday, but it is expected to document a marked increase in the number of people gambling both online and in casinos.
The dramatic rise over the past eight years ties in with the increasing popularity of online betting and touch screen roulette games.
The Independent piece speculates that the study will say a million people in the UK are now gambling online, spending an average of GBP 1 000 a year each.
Mainstream media expect UK government to come under pressure on supercasino
Many of Britain's mainstream newspapers carried news over the weekend of the imminent release of the UK Gambling Commission's "Gambling Prevalence" study. Leaked excerpts from the report, due for release Wednesday, and speculation on its full content has already been the subject of extensive reportage in mainstream media.
The Telegraph opined that as a result of the problem gambling statistics believed to be in the report prime minister Gordon Brown is likely to come under pressure to rule out any chance of a land super-casino being built.
The newspaper goes on to claim that the Gambling Prevalence Study is likely to show that "almost a million gamblers have a severe addiction." This compares with the last study, commissioned by the Gaming Board in 1999, which found that about 300 000 gamblers had a "problem". The difference between "severe addiction" and "problem" is not detailed.
The Telegraph speculates that the report will disclose that 33 million adults, or 72 percent of the UK population, gambled in some form. Presumably this figure, if accurate, reflects all forms of gambling such as lotteries, football pools, horse-racing and the like.
UK ministers have already commissioned another prevalence study in three years, as concern about problem gambling grows, the article reveals without giving a source.
Since that first study in 1999, there has been no material increase in the number of casinos, and a small decline in the numbers of bingo halls, the article continues. Yet the opportunities to gamble have increased tenfold, particularly with the introduction of online betting, and a sharp rise in the number of touch-screen roulette games, in which punters can bet up to GBP 300 a minute.
Prime minister Brown let it be known that he disproves of gambling when he levied a surprise GBP 100 million tax on casinos in his last Budget as Chancellor in March this year.
Soon afterwards, plans for 17 casinos were thrown out by Parliament, and Brown then ordered a review of plans for a super casino in Manchester.
With differing "leaked" statistics in various newspapers, it is clear there is still some confusion over the exact content or interpretation of the study.
The Independent reported that: "Gambling addiction in the UK has more than doubled in recent years with up to 600 000 people hooked, new figures are expected to reveal."
The newspaper goes on to inform that details of the report are being kept secret until its official release on Wednesday, but it is expected to document a marked increase in the number of people gambling both online and in casinos.
The dramatic rise over the past eight years ties in with the increasing popularity of online betting and touch screen roulette games.
The Independent piece speculates that the study will say a million people in the UK are now gambling online, spending an average of GBP 1 000 a year each.