Northern Ireland politician calls for expedition of proposed gambling levy
Lawmakers are concerned about figures in the 2024 Gambling Prevalence Survey.
Northern Ireland.- Lawmakers in Northern Ireland have raised concerns about the low number of people seeking help for gambling harm in the country. According to the 2024 Gambling Prevalence Survey, only 1 per cent of gamblers use support or information from betting or mental health services.
Meanwhile, 3 per cent of the population were found to be experiencing severe gambling-related harms, and 10 per cent were classed as low or moderate risk. Around one in 10 adults who gambled in the past 12 months said they had bet more than they could afford to lose.
Sinn Féin member of the legislative assembly (MLA) Philip McGuigan, who chairs the All Party Group on Reducing Harm Related to Gambling, has called for urgent action, including the expedition of a planned levy on land-based gambling operators to fund treatment and support.
He said: “The Minister of Health must act without delay to commission dedicated gambling treatment services. With existing addiction services already under pressure, additional funding is essential. “The findings of this survey point to a serious gap in provision for addiction treatment in the north. The need is clearly there, but people aren’t getting the help they need.”
He added: “This isn’t just about individuals losing money; it’s about broken families, damaged relationships, and communities struggling with the fallout of gambling harms.”
Some Northern Irish legislators have argued for some time that the jurisdiction has fallen behind both the UK and the Republic of Ireland in terms of gambling regulation. The Republic of Ireland passed new legislation last year, leading to the creation of the new Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, which expects to start taking licence applications soon. The new legislation also introduces a new gambling social impact fund to be financed through a levy on gambling and new advertising and promotion rules.
Northern Ireland still does not have dedicated online gambling regulation. There are plans to introduce a levy on land-based gambling operators, and McGuigan has called on the minister for communities to expedite its implementation to help address the funding gap in for support services
The MLA criticised the British government for not including Northern Ireland in its plans for the distribution of funds from the British gambling levy introduced on April 6. He also called for the British Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to tighten advertising restrictions since the survey found that 66 per cent of respondents thought there were too many, while 71 per cent expressed favour for a watershed for gambling ads on TV and radio.
