The National Lottery is in hot water once again after the company exec. commented that it could take up to 12 months to enforce the upcoming ban on under 18 lottery sales.
In a recent APPG session on Gambling Related Harm, CEO of Camelot, Nigel Railton said that the policy to increase the age minimum on lottery products could take up to a year to implement due to the time-consuming process of changing shop signage.
Railton stated that the COVID pandemic would be the primary reason for the delay. MPs have criticised UK Lottery operator Camelot over the waiting period, with one member calling the lengthly process “wholly unacceptable”.
The move to raise the age from 16 to 18 comes as no surprise after a report released by the UK gambling association found that 9% of 11-16-year-olds in England and Scotland spent their own money on gambling activities in the seven days prior to participating in the study. Statistics also showed that 37% of 11-16-year-olds in England and Scotland had gambled in that 12 month period.
In response to this report which was published back in August 2020, the Scottish parliament said it would ban all under 18s from participating in National Lottery games. Boris Johnson also announced that he would unveil laws to prevent underage gambling “within months” back in the summer.
The Gambling Commission’s analysis shows that 1.7% of 11–16-year-olds are classified as problem gamblers, which equates to 55,000 young people.
Recently, the People’s Postcode lottery was also thrown into question over provoking gambling addiction, as TV advertising and call sales rose sharply in 2020.