Gambling Survey for Great Britain, Second Annual Report - a summary
On 2 October the Gambling Commission (UKGC) published the results for the 2024 Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB). Andrew Rhodes, CEO, UKGC, was positive about the results, suggesting that making games less intense, introducing light touch financial checks, and removing harmful marketing offers were contributing to better player protection. Below we look at some of the key findings from the report.
No additional harm – on the whole
When the results for the 2023 GSGB were published, there were worries that the rate of problem gambling had increased. Happily, these rates have remained stable since 2023. However the PGSI (Problem Gambling Severity Index) findings (see below) did highlight some concerning trends.
Male gamblers rank more highly for problem gambling
Males who had gambled in the past 12 months had the highest rating on the PGSI scale with 6% scoring 8 or more compared to just 2.8% of females. (A score of 8 is defined as: “Representing problem gambling by which a person will have experienced adverse consequences from gambling and may have lost control of their behaviour.”)
The type of gambling matters
Perhaps the most interesting, and surprising, finding from the PGSI section of the survey was just how much more negatively affected people were that bet on non-sporting events, such as reality television – these people having a PGSI score above 8 were more than 9x more likely than for other gamblers.
Lottery statistics skew the overall data
One of the aspects of the survey’s results that it was impossible to ignore was the enormous skew that lotteries had on results. The majority of results were published both with and without lotteries, as it made such an impact. Most notable findings included:
- 48% of adults in Great Britain had gambled in the last 4 weeks
- 20% of adults had only gambled on the lottery in the last 4 weeks
The most common gambling activities in the past 4 weeks among all participants were:
- buying tickets for the National Lottery (31%)
- buying tickets for other charity lotteries (16%)
- buying scratchcards (13%)
Online vs in person gambling
The difference between online gambling and in person gambling was pronounced, but, when purchasing online lottery tickets was removed from findings, there was little difference.
- With lottery included: 38% participated in online gambling, 29% in person.
- With lottery removed: 16% online gambled, 18% in person.
When attitudes on gambling were measured, 42% of adults reported a positive score and 21% a negative score. However, when gamblers who only played the lottery were removed, 49% gave a positive score and 19% a negative score.
Why we gamble
Our attitudes to gambling are largely unchanged from the 2023 report. But it was still interesting to note that overwhelmingly the biggest reason for gambling was ‘for the chance of winning big money’ with 85% of gamblers selecting this reason. In some regards it’s quite surprising that the 85% figure isn’t higher.
Other reasons included:
- because gambling is fun (72%)
- to make money (57%)
- because gambling is exciting (56%)
PGSI and deprivation findings
Perhaps the most troubling part of the survey was the section that found strong correlations between living in a deprived area and experiencing a high score on the PGSI scale.
In England the proportion of participants with a PGSI score of 8 or more was 5.9% among those living in the most deprived areas and 1% among those living in the least deprived areas.
In Scotland, it was 11% (most deprived) and between 0.5% and 0.7% (least deprived). In Wales, it was 5.8% (most deprived) and between 2.4% and 2.8% (least deprived).
Clearly this is an area that needs to be researched further.
Final thoughts
The GSGB for 2024 went into far more depth in terms of the type of gambling that participants took part in, giving a much more well-rounded view of where damage is occurring.
It’s a shame to see such a marked effect on problem gambling rates – which perhaps supports the argument for the closure of clusters of betting shops in deprived areas. But, it will also be interesting to see if lotteries will be invited to contribute to the levy to a higher degree as a result of this survey.