The Betting & Gaming Council (BGC) highlighted figures used by the Gambling Commission which show that the gambling problem among adults in the UK has dropped to 0.2% in 2022. The previous year (2021) the rates had stood at 0.3 %; however, news that the level has dropped again means that UK sector-related issues are below international standards, according to the survey.
An estimated 22.5m adults place bets every month in the region, with gambling contributing £7.1bn ($8.6bn) to the economy, worth £4.2bn in tax and supporting more than 100 thousand jobs.
BGC Chief Executive Michael Dugher said: “These newly released figures are further evidence of the positive progress we have made on safer gambling and underline our urgent calls for ministers to take a genuinely evidence-based approach to the next White Paper”.
“These numbers showing that the gambling problem has once again gone down will no doubt be a profound disappointment to anti-gambling prohibitionists, who like to greatly exaggerate the issue.”
“Their alarmist demands are not supported by the evidence. We want big changes, but they must be focused on this small minority who are vulnerable to harm – not the vast majority who gamble safely and responsibly. We need a risk-based approach that helps the vulnerable , don’t ruin the responsible majority experience,” added Dugher.
The UK Government’s White Paper, which is supposed to have a significant impact on how the region regulates gambling in the future, is expected to be published soon. But this document should still take some time to come out. Dugher also cited that he doesn’t know what will be included in the forthcoming White Paper on gambling – and that almost no one has that information yet.