The Commission's assertion that problem gambling was dramatically rising because playing at online casinos has grown in popularity was dismissed as rubbish.

Officials throughout the British government clashed as announcement of increases in problem gambling by the Gambling Commission were disputed by the dept of Culture, which used actual research to derive far different figures. The Commission's assertion that problem gambling was dramatically rising because playing at online casinos has grown in popularity was dismissed as rubbish.

Conservative politicians had latched onto an arbitrary estimate that 7.4 percent of Internet gambling patrons develop compulsive gambling. However, an official government study shows that problem gambling constitutes only 0.6 percent of the population.

``There isn't any basis if truth be told for this claim and the truth is that levels of problem gambling haven't risen since 1997," says a spokesman for the dept of Culture. "Whilst it's true that more persons are gambling online, it doesn't necessarily follow that more have gotten problem gamblers."

The Tories would use the heavily exaggerated claims to justify blocking some online casinos from advertising, and making gaming licenses harder to acquire. Presently, sites can release UK ads in the event that they are based in a rustic at the white list, but don't receive individual review.

Figures show over 1 / 4 million more adults gambled on the net this year within the UK over last year, a rise of 5.2 percent.

Published on March 22, 2009 by TomWeston

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