Author: Daniel Williams

The Wales’ Chief Medical Officer Dr. Frank Atherton has described gambling as a public health problem which is quickly becoming more and more widespread. Today, Dr. Atherton is expected to officially roll out his second annual report, calling for the Government to pay more attention to emerging issues associated with gambling addictions. The Chief Medical Officer for Wales is to launch his report which is to call for the local authorities to support local players who suffer from problem gambling behaviour and gambling-related harm, respectively. Dr. Atherton is to also…

The state of Florida would not be forced to pay the expected expenses of $450,000 to the lawyers of nine cardroom operators in a legal battle over the so-called “designated player” games. The Sunshine State was backed by the Administrative Law Judge E. Gary Early, who ruled against the cardroom operators and their claims. Under the judge’s ruling, the gambling operators’ legal representatives would have to split only $50,000 in fees. Judge Early explained that Florida gambling law does not feature a definitive determination on whether multiple awards against an…

The number of gambling ads which reach children has increased immensely in a period of a little more than a decade. Since the gambling advertising legislation was relaxed by the Government of the then-Prime Minister Tony Blair, the number of gambling adverts seen by young individuals has increased almost three times, reaching over 1.4 billion on an annual basis. The legislation which was introduced by the Labour Government, lifted some limitations on gaming adverts aired on TV. At the time when the 2005 Gambling Act was presented, children from 4…

According to figures revealed by the State Government of Australia, Townsville players have bet almost AU$1.5 million on pokies in 2017. The total amount of AU$1,423,568 which local players spent on poker machines last year marked an increase in comparison to the amount spent a year earlier, with the residents of the coastal city losing approximately AU$100 million on the machines. As revealed by the country’s State Government, in 2017 Townsville gamblers lost an overall of AU$97,195,541. In comparison, back in 2016 they lost an amount of AU$95,771,972. The findings…

The Church of England has urged the UK Government to reduce gambling adverts at a time when voices have been raised in the industry, sharing concerns that children and young individuals in the country are being targeted with messages that make betting look like a normal everyday activity. According to campaigners, all gambling adverts aired before the 9:00 PM watershed have to be banned. Recently, the Church of England became one of the opponents of aggressive gambling advertising campaigns used by some operators and called for more serious measures to…

The beginning of the week saw the 2018 regular Diet session start in Japan, with the country’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe calling for the political parties to pay attention at a number of issues of great national importance. As Casino Guardian reported, the ordinary session started on Monday, with a number of political goals for the legislature to be considered, including a possible revision of the country’s Constitution that could lead to the first Japanese referendum, the Prime Minister’s “work-style reform” and the country’s gambling sector, especially in terms of…

HM Treasury has shared concerns about the expected reduction of maximum stakes allowed at fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) in the country. According to the Treasury, the upcoming crackdown on the machines is to end up with a sharp decline in the funds or financial reserves of public organisations aimed at helping local residents who suffer from gambling addictions. This week, the discussions of the possible clampdown on fixed-odds betting terminals are becoming more and more heated, considering the recently-appointed Culture Secretary Matthew Hancock has backed the smallest possible new maximum…

The South Australian Centre for Economic Studies has carried out a research for the Independent Gambling Authority, the South Australian gambling regulator responsible for monitoring and control on casinos, gaming machines, sports betting and commercial lotteries. The study was especially aimed to check on the automatic alerts which are activated after players had spent several hours gaming. As reported by The Advertiser, the study was especially focused on the timing and response rate of such alerts in the period from 2015 to the first three months of 2017. According to…

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has been pleased to see a new report posted by the independent charities network Citizens Advice, which is aimed to raise the awareness of the causes and impacts of problem gambling in the UK. In its report, released yesterday, the charity network has called the local Government to take advantage of its powers to raise the mandatory levy on betting operators, which would require from them to make larger payments to deal with gambling-related harm. Citizens Advice insists that betting companies must not be left…

It seems that the Tasmanian gambling landscape is turning into a heated arena of discussions and struggle for power advantage. The two casinos of the state have seen many employees trying to win a pay rise at a time when Federal Group, the local gambling giant, has put Labor Party’s poker machines policy under fire. Reportedly, the two casinos in the Tasmania – Hobart-located Wrest Point Casino and the Launceston Country Club have seen some of their staff members decide against the operator’s latest offer to boost their salaries with…