In
March 2004, many young people in the ALOVE
community took part in The Salvation Army
and Methodist church’s broader campaign
to petition Government over the draft gambling
bill. As a result of the campaign aspects
of the bill were altered (see news links at
the foot of this email).
The campaign is now turning its attention
to encouraging local groups to speak out about
proposals for casinos in their communities
under the new Gambling Act. The two churches
have therefore produced resources for any
faith group or local action group wanting
to get involved in the debate over casinos
in their communities, as councils submit formal
proposals to the Government’s Casino
Advisory Panel by the end of March 2006.
If you want to continue to be part of this
campaign and speaking into how it could impact
your locality, this article will give you
a summary of the current situation. The Salvation
Army has also produced a number of resources
, which you can download to provide extra
information on the campaign.
What is the present situation?
The Gambling Bill became an Act in 2005, allowing
one ‘Super-casino’, eight ‘large’
and eight ‘small’ casinos to be
built somewhere in the UK. Several towns and
cities have shown interest in securing a licence
for one of these casinos, and there is cause
for concern about the potential negative effect
they could have on local communities. The
deadline for local authorities to make their
bids for a casino is the end of March 2006.
The issues
...
The Salvation Army and the Methodist Church
amongst others are concerned that any increase
in gambling opportunities is likely to lead
to an increase in problem gambling. Problem
gambling occurs when an individual becomes
dependent upon gambling and can be classified
as being addicted. Unlike addiction to drugs
or alcohol, problem gambling can manifest
without visible symptoms, and many problem
gamblers either deny or hide their addiction.
It can lead to debt, relationship breakdown,
loss of employment, depression, illness and
sometimes homelessness or suicide. According
to a study carried out by the Henley Centre
in 2004, there are already in the region of
370,000 problem gamblers in the UK.
Background information:
Originally the Government was going to allow
an unlimited number of huge Super-casinos.
The Salvation Army and the Methodist Church
ran an award-winning campaign which resulted
in the number of Super-casinos being capped
at just one. For the Government to increase
this number it will have to take the proposals
through Parliament again. However, DCMS Minister
of State, Richard Caborn said recently that
‘[the Government] will listen to parliament,
local authorities and the general public.
If there is a mood change and the demand is
there, we will consider it.’
In light of this comment, it is vital that
those who oppose the casino are vocal in their
opposition.
Is there a proposed casino in your area?
Local authorities
which have shown an interest in a regional
casino are:
Havering, Coventry, Cardiff, Glasgow, Sunderland,
Hull, Blackpool, Newcastle, Sheffield, Southampton,
Birmingham, Southend-on-Sea, Brent, Leeds,
Solihull, Wakefield, Great Yarmouth, Manchester,
Greenwich, Middlesbrough, Maidstone, West
Dunbartonshire, Canterbury, Luton, Renfrewshire,
Ipswich, Chesterfield.
Local
authorities which implied interest in a regional
casino (but not stated) are:
North Lanarkshire, Tewkesbury, Bury, Scarborough,
Bolsover, Hertesmere, Cannock Chase, North
Somerset, Salford, Leicester, Dumfries and
Galloway, South Lanarkshire, Restormel, East
Lindsey, Sevenoaks, Havant, Mansfield, Stevenage.
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