Until now, facilities addressing problem gambling had charitable funding only. But, this is about to change. The British government is set to channel more funds to fight this problem behaviour. The injection of an extra £20.5 Billion into the National Health Service (NHS) should fund several areas. They range from mental health services to building new clinics for gambling addicts. In addition, new initiatives from major banks target similar areas.
Government Push
Recently, the PM Theresa May told the Health Secretary Matt Hancock to build more facilities to help people with addiction. In fact, currently, there’s only one in the Fulham area and its GambleAware. Plus, the clinic is funded by a charity.
In a statement, the charity said they’re happy about the news plus that it’s a “very welcome development.” The latest news came two months after the charity announced it will open a second clinic of this kind. The facility will open in Leeds in April and should soon be able to help people in the area.
Financial Sector
In the meantime, several of the top UK banks announced they will address the case of excess gambling. In fact, they’ll do it via new tools designed to mitigate this issue. Big banks such as Santander, RBS and Lloyds all plan to introduce the new system during 2019. In essence, an app setting will allow users to prevent their credit card from funding online gambling. All and all, it’s not the first time UK banks take measures addressing problem gambling.
Last December, Barclays became the first financial institution to offer clients similar services. They allowed blocking some merchant types. The system prevented these merchants from receiving payments from their credit cards. As it goes, one of these merchant types included gambling. Also, Monzo, the mobile-only bank, announced it will soon introduce such system, too.
