UKGC publishes report on gambling trends

The commission said that there is a need for stronger partnerships to protect children.

UK.- The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) published a new report on Wednesday, where it calls for regulators and businesses across industries to work together in order to prevent gambling from reaching children.

The report shows that gambling participation by 11 to 16-year-olds has increased in the last 12 months but it is still lower when compared to previous years. The research highlights the need for a collaborative proactive approach to protect young people, as it identifies the most common gambling activities that children are engaging in are often outside of the Gambling Commission’s direct regulatory control. Some of these trends include bets between friends, lottery scratch cards purchased by parents and playing of fruit machines in pubs.

Tim Miller, Executive Director at the Gambling Commission, said: “Protecting children from the harms that can come from gambling remains one of our highest priorities. In the areas we have regulatory control, we continue to strengthen the protections in place to prevent underage gambling, such as our recent proposals for enhanced age verifications checks for online gambling.”

“But regulation alone cannot address all of the risks that young people may face from gambling. Our latest research shows that the most common forms of gambling by children do not happen in gambling premises. Some of these are legal, such as bets between friends; some of these are unlawful, such as gambling on machines in pubs. But all of them present risks to young people as there is no form of gambling that is risk-free. It is therefore vital that all those with a part to play in protecting children and young people – parents, businesses and regulators – work together,” he added.