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Gamblers to Face Addiction Checks
Gamblers who get too hooked on the cards and roulette wheels will be
told to leave casinos under controversial Government plans to combat
addiction.
Where once only the biggest winners would have been asked to leave
before they broke the bank, Ministers now want croupiers trained to
identify life’s losers – the problem gamblers in danger of bankrupting
only themselves.
Critics will argue that making staff responsible for their punters’
welfare is impractical, with profitable customers unlikely to be turned
away. Compulsive gamblers who vary their haunts would also be hard to
detect.
However Tessa Jowell, the Culture Secretary, argues the plan to make
‘social responsibility’ a condition of gambling licences could help
prevent a rise in gambling addiction. Critics have said her planned
liberalisation of gaming laws will only encourage more people to get
hooked.
‘Casino operators say at the moment that they can recognise people
who are beginning to develop signs of compulsion and problem gambling,’
Jowell told The Observer. ‘They say their staff know how, just like
people behind bars are quite good at dealing with people who are getting
very drunk.
‘We haven’t taken a settled view on this, but it could include
training for staff, evidence that staff are required to exercise this
degree of vigilance.’
She is also considering curbs on the number of high value fruit
machines that casinos can install, following evidence that the speed of
the game makes it the most addictive.
Restrictions on how much money a gambler could lose at once, with
machines automatically cutting out or online gaming sites rejecting
credit cards after a certain amount is spent, are also under
consideration.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is expected to publish
its draft gambling Bill later this spring.
Read the
entire article at:
Guardian Unlimited
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