As Britain progresses towards licensing its first ever super casino, with jackpot slot machines that could make a player rich, the other side of the coin is hitting the headlines once again. Problem gambling, a subject never far from media attention, is presently front page news.

Dunedin Casino in New Zealand is facing a licence suspension of up to six months for allegedly taking insufficient care to prevent a player from losing so much money that she took to stealing. A similar story comes from the UK, where a 23-year old has been jailed for five years after siphoning around £1 million (US$1.75 million) from his employer’s accounts into his own to feed a gambling habit. No casino involvement here, mostly Internet betting.

From Scotland comes a more worrying report than those of individual gambling aberrations. According to a new study from Glasgow Caledonian University, 1 child in every 10 in Scotland has a gambling problem. Obviously this is not from casino gambling, this is from the arcade machines commonly known as fruit machines. In Scotland, like the rest of the UK, under-16s can play these machines and win £5 jackpots for a 10p stake (Category D machines). To many this would seem a state of affairs that could be remedied swiftly.

Truants from school often play the fruit machines, and it should be apparent to those operating the venues when school children should not be on the premises. The study reports that 9.7% of secondary school pupils aged 13 or 14 had a problem with their gambling. It also discovered that children as young as 11 were skipping school to play. Many researchers see a link between childhood gambling and problem gambling or addiction in adulthood.

Arcade gaming has long been seen as a traditional form of family entertainment in Britain. The British Amusement Catering Trades Association (BACTA) estimates there are around 420,000 gaming and amusement machines sited in pubs, clubs, bingo premises, seaside and inland arcades, bookmakers, casinos and many other premises. Under the Gambling Act 2005, Family Entertainment Centres with Category D machines do not require operator licences or premises licences. There is also no limit on the number of these machines at a venue.

One of the stated prime objectives of the UK government’s Gambling Act is the protection of children and the vulnerable. GamCare, the registered charity offering counselling and advice on gambling, notes that around 75% of teenagers gamble and three-quarters of those play the fruit machines. With so much concern over gambling and the young, it would seem appropriate for far more information and education on the subject to be available at schools and the arcades themselves.

Responsible gambling practices are part of casino operators’ policy and government regulations. More should be required of arcade operators and legislators to ensure that problem gambling does not start with playing the fruit machines. (E-08.03.06)

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