Criticism of fixed-odds betting terminals in the UK continued last week with a House of Lords debate on the subject of the proposed new stakes and prizes for all levels of gambling machines in the UK.
During a debate, Baroness Jones of Whitchurch expressed “major concerns” over the terminals and increasing evidence of the harm that the machines are having on individuals and local communities through the proliferation of high-street betting shops, which are increasingly reliant on the profit from the machines.
Jones said: “These machines are the source of some of the worst examples of gambling addiction. It is possible to lose up to £100 every 20 seconds which is £18,000 an hour. The speed of play is faster than a roulette table, and it can happen without any staff contact or intervention. Meanwhile bookmakers containing these machines are being clustered in some of the poorest high streets in Britain and local authorities have limited control over their expansion as in planning law they are classified in the same class as banks and building societies.”
Lord Bates, responding, reported that the government had sought quantifiable evidence on the impact of a reduction in stakes and prizes on the machines but the evidence was inconclusive. The government "remains concerned about these machines" and their potential association with an elevated risk of gambling-related harm, said Bates, adding that monitoring of the machines would continue.
Bates seriously doubted that losses of £18,000 an hour was "astronomically improbable." A report on the subject was due to be completed by the Responsible Gambling Strategy Board by the autumn of 2014.
