Government considers gambling-related harm a ‘public health issue’

In comments made at the GambleAware conference last month, Chris Philp also stated the government saw gambling-related harm as a “public health issue”. Additionally, he outlined some areas where he sees there’s a “particular opportunity for innovation in the interest of consumers”. 

For example, he told operators that when they see a customer is at risk of harm, they need to step in - doing so by talking to the customer, imposing limits or help them set up their own, or even go so far as to close their account. He added: “We have all seen and heard too many cases of people spending enormous sums and operator interventions coming too late.

“Of course, people’s circumstances differ and not everyone who spends a lot is at risk. But unaffordable losses are a key sign of out of control gambling that is causing harm - as one of the conference panels will discuss later today. 

“So it is essential the right checks are made and in a digital age we need to harness data to do this effectively.” 

As for affordability checks, he believed they need to be proportionate and is keen to explore the role of technology and available data, such as that held by credit reference agencies, adding that at “high levels of gambling” more intrusive checks are appropriate. 

Additionally, he emphasised the importance of cross-platform work when supporting those in the “grip of a gambling problem”. He explained: “Operators definitely need the right processes to intervene and prevent harm on their own platforms and they have all made strides in developing algorithms that enable them to spot when to do this. 

“But we know that on average, people who gamble online have opened three accounts with different operators, and young adults and problem gamblers usually have even more. This means that the efforts of individual operators to prevent harm are undermined if a person in the grip of a gambling problem can simply switch to another operator. 

“To me, shoring up our systems to prevent this must be a priority. I take encouragement from the success of GAMSTOP, the multi-operator online self-exclusion scheme, as an example of the benefits from sector-wide protections which capitalise on the available technology to do things better.” 

He also highlighted Public Health England’s evidence review on gambling-related harm, which he said provided an invaluable contribution to the evidence base of its ongoing review.  

Published in November 2021 and based on data from 2018, it found that 24.5m people in England gambled - making up 54% of the population - and estimated that 0.5% are “problem gamblers’’. It also estimates that 3.8% of the population are classified as at-risk gamblers. 

Alongside this, at-risk and problem gamblers are more likely to have poor health, low life satisfaction and wellbeing. This is particularly true where there is an indication of psychological health problems. 

Philp said these findings made it clear that more work needs to be done to understand the drivers of a gambling disorder. 

He added: “An important part of the solution is improving the quality of data that the Gambling Commission as regulator, we as government, but also researchers and clinical experts, have access to - which can in turn inform the best possible policies and approaches. 

“I see great promise, therefore, in the development of a Data Repository as a pillar in our work to fill the gaps that still exist in our understanding. This will of course need to be complemented by the appropriate analytical expertise, so as part of the review, we are exploring the scope for more investment in data capability within the Gambling Commission. 

“They need powers to regulate the enormous and innovative gambling industry, including the ability to requisition and analyse bulk account-level data from operators to identify whether they’re doing what they’re supposed to under their licence conditions.”