Author: Daniel Williams

The recent crackdown imposed on the controversial fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) has been backed by a Sunderland academic. As revealed by The Sunderland Echo, Dr. Helen Knight, a lecturer in psychology at the local university has welcomed the Government’s decision to reduce the maximum stake allowed at the machines in order to tackle gambling-related harm inflicted to customers. According to Dr. Knight, players felt a primal need to chase the loss, adding that such a behaviour has been one of the main reasons why North East gamblers lost millions of…

The Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Ralph Torres vetoed a piece of legislation which would have made some poker arcades legal. This, on the other hand, would have allowed them to continue operating in some Saipan villages. The bill, called House Local Bill 20-48, has reached the Governor’s desk after it was officially passed by the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation last week. Now, Governor Torres has shared his intention to veto the local measure under which certain areas in Saipan would have been…

A few days ago, the new problem gambling measure in Japan managed to pass the House of Representatives. After being given the green light at the lower parliamentary chamber, the gambling addiction bill is to proceed to the House of Councillors for further consideration, discussion and vote. As recently reported by Casino Guardian, a new anti-gambling addiction bill was submitted to the Lower House by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, its junior coalition partner Komeito and Nippon Ishin no Kai, the nominal opposition party. The piece of legislation is especially…

A cross-party group of Members of Parliament have shared their concerns with the rising levels of problem gambling in the UK. The MPs insisted that gambling companies should be addressed like tobacco firms in terms of advertising, with more serious warnings made about potential gambling-related harm. In an open letter to the culture secretary Matthew Hancock, the group has insisted that stricter regulation on gambling advertising should be released, with more measures aimed at greater compliance fairness and social responsibility to be provided in licensing and advertising of gambling measures.…

Lawmakers in Japan finally started discussions over the long-anticipated casino bill at a plenary meeting of the House of Representatives on Tuesday. The legislation, submitted to the Diet on April 27, establishes the framework of introducing integrated resorts, which would feature casinos. The Integrated Resorts Implementation Bill is supported by the ruling coalition led by the Liberal Democratic Party, which tries to get the legislation implemented by the end of the regular session on June 20. According to local media reports, the Diet is considering an extension of the legislative…

The Chief of the Kansai Association of Corporate Executives, Hiroyuki Ikeda, revealed in a recent interview for the media that the local business community will do whatever it takes to make the Osaka Prefecture home of a casino resort. According to Mr. Ikeda, the new integrated casino resort is expected to attract massive investments estimated at trillions of yen and would create a large number of jobs in the region, which would be beneficial for the local economy. Mr. Ikeda who is a deputy chairman of Resona Bank said that…

Durham County Councillor Joy Allen, who strongly backed the latest changes in the UK gambling sector, welcomed the recently-announced restrictions on gambling saying that the amendments could save lives. Ms. Allen is known for her efforts in lobbying with the Legal Government Association (LGA) for adequate reforms to be brought to the industry in order to prevent players from being affected by gambling-related harm. Only a week ago, the UK Government announced plans to reduce the maximum stake allowed on fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs), which offered players to place up…

The major gambling regulatory body in the UK – the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) – has questioned the effectiveness of the national online self-exclusion scheme called GAMSTOP. After a number of articles regarding the results of the UK Government to reduce maximum stake of fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) have been released in the local media over the last few weeks, some questions regarding the effectiveness of the scheme emerged in the UKGC and the local Remote Gaming Association (RGA). As The Guardian reported a few days ago, the Gambling Commission’s…

Today, the Premier of South Australia, Steven Marshall announced some development plans for the Adelaide Casino upgrade. Mr. Marshall revealed that construction is set to begin in June and will be carried out at the price of AU$330 million. As revealed by the Premier, it is SkyCity Entertainment Group that has signed a construction deal with Hansen Yuncken, an Australian commercial construction company, in order to complete the expansion of the Adelaide Casino. Hansen Yunken was already involved in the initial scoping and development of the casino back in 1985.…

According to a recently-held poll which results were released today, approximately 50% of the American citizens support sports betting legalization in the US. The survey, conducted by the PublicMind, an independent research group of the Fairleigh Dickinson University, showed that the poll’s respondents think the gambling expansion must be made not only because of the additional tax revenue which is expected to be brought to the states but also because many people are already betting illegally. PublicMind Poll revealed that its latest survey found that half of the American adults…