Chris Evans, a Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom, has issued an opinion piece shared with media outlets, in which he discussed the importance of the government doing more to protect minors from gambling-related harm.
Evans is not the only one to champion one important truth – that exposure to gambling in one’s childhood could have a significant long-term impact on individual behavior, and lead to gambling addiction later in life.
Early exposure to gambling could lead to long-term harm
"My children, like many others, are into sports. They look up to these athletes as heroes, something many parents encourage. But when these role models appear alongside headlines like "free £2 shop bet" or the logos of major bookmakers, it creates a troubling association," Evans said in his opinion piece.
Evans spoke about the importance of specifically ensuring that children who are actively involved in sports are also not exposed to this untargeted advertising. The MP similarly cautioned that the idea that gambling ads ought to be wrapped up as "cartoons" does not reflect the realities of what is currently happening.
He drew parallels with how tobacco advertising used to be deeply-rooted in public spaces and how it permeated every walk of life – no longer.
"Gambling is now deeply embedded in sports culture, whether that is on radio, TV, in print, or online. Even live commentary can feel like thinly veiled gambling product placement," Evans explained, but also offered reasons to be optimistic – "it doesn’t have to be this way."
He similarly called for the need to adapt gambling laws to the present-day realities, explaining that when the Gambling Act 2005 was originally introduced, mobile phone usage, and especially among children, was a fraction of what it is today.
Children must be protected, and an independent regulator ought to emerge
This is why the government and those in charge of regulation ought to ensure that children are protected.
Evans outlined an independent regulator that can penalize companies for breach of advertising rules, or even "shut them down" if the offense is too great. The good news is that what the MP outlines has already been codified in new laws.
The government has enacted a statutory levy and is replacing industry-funded GambleAware with a more tightly regulated alternative for administering research, treatment, and help options.
The UK Gambling Commission has also passed measures that would now penalize offending companies based on their gross gaming yield, a metric that the watchdog believes would give most companies a great incentive to ensure that they meet the most rigorous compliance and player safety criteria.
Evans has hailed the current changes that also focus on "evidence-based approach" in deploying rules and regulations, but cautioned that this is but a first step.
As to Evans, he has a promise to make: "I will keep pushing for reforms to make that happen."
