Gambling in the UK is Filled with Charitable Contributions
Gambling has been in existence for quite some number of years and will still be there long after I am gone. That is my prediction, and history backs it. People are driven by human nature to gamble, to take the risks and to be optimistic in winning, but it was only available at certain times. And then it greatly changed with technology where people can gamble online and even people who are not involved directly with it, are reaping the benefits.
Online casino gambling caught on and became one of the best internet based industries which adds revenue to the United Kingdom through charitable contributions. They are regulated by the commissions of gambling on behalf of the government. The Responsible Gambling Trust plans to distribute £5,307,960 on Research (10%), Education (6%) and Treatment (84%) in the year ending 31 March 2014. Read more.
There are various types of gambling where a percentage goes to charity:
1. Bingo and casinos
2. Gambling on sports
3. Lottery
4. Scratch cards
5. Arcades
6. Remote gambling
Bingo and casinos
This game of bingo came gained fame during World War II among the armed forces and introduced in Britain as the war came to an end. The bingo halls for commercial use were set up after being allowed by the Gambling Act of 1960, and the agreement was that they were to be set up as members-only clubs and had to pay license to the government from the fees and charges collected from the members rather than as a percentage of the entry fees. Of course the winnings are taxed.
Casinos game also required that it was to be for members only where the gaming machines were limited to ten only. The Port Talbot casino club in Wales is said to be the first legal casino club to the Britain and was set up in 1961. George James also set up several dining establishments in the 1960s inclusive of the Charlie Chester Casino and Golden Horseshoe in London and the Kingsway. The commercial casino jobs were paved way after the liberalization of the law by the Gaming act of parliament of 1968. In this regard Chemmy became the first famous game popularized by one club in London known as the Clermont club. This anticipated that online gambling was to generate about $1 billion to the government revenues. Read more history here.
Gambling on sport
This gaming has been controlled for a number of years. Pool betting on horses was one of the games that is controlled by one group. There is a large market in the United Kingdom for gambling on competitive sports at websites that have a license for horses in particular. There are also football pools where players win right by predicting the weekly results which is an associated form of gambling. Through this the gambling earns some revenue that is given to charity.
Another form of gambling is the lottery
This type of gambling was termed to be illegal by default in England as stated in some statute unless it was authorised by the statute small lotteries were legalised by an act of government in 1934. Since there was no any big lottery, the government established one that is the national lottery.
Several games like Lotto are being conducted in this lottery where players choose a set of numbers that are drawn randomly and in the event if some numbers match players win prizes.
In the United Kingdom the national lottery that was set up has raised millions of pounds for a programme that issues money to people through grants.
Healthy lottery
This form of gambling was launched to raise money for healthy related charities. This was a game where tickets were sold one pound and twenty percent of the total raised will go to the charities.
Postcode Lottery
This type of gambling was an aid to charity in the United Kingdom where an entrant’s code is used together with its private three digit code as their ticket number. Prizes are drawn weekly and cash plus other prizes are granted to the charities involved.
Scratch cards
These are a very well-known form of gambling in the United Kingdom and are related to street games, where you would try to find a ball in one of three cups. They are popular since they are cheap to play and their availability is high, from storefronts to online bingo halls. On these small cards an area has been covered by some opaque substance that can be easily scratched off, or waved off with a computer mouse. The area hides the pictures or items that should be removed for one to the money that is hidden behind it… how exciting!
Arcades
In the United Kingdom the three types of amusement arcades identified are:
- The adult gambling centres
- Licensed family entertainment centres
- Unlicensed family entertainment centres
- These gambling arcades can raise up to 80 % of gross earning to the United Kingdom charities
Remote gambling
This type of gambling has been gaining popularity in the United Kingdom since the bills introduction in 2005. See the definition and the remote gambling bill explained in detail here. This was enacted because a high percentage of adults are said to participate in some sort of wagering from a location that is not a land-based casino. The percentage has been increasing year after year with most of the gamblers being represented by those playing the National Lottery online. If not included the percentage will be fairly constant as well.
Online gambling therefore gives a lot to charity in the United Kingdom, in a lot of different ways. This has been enhanced by making all forms of online gambling to have a license issued by the Gambling Commission and therefore can be legally provided in the country, adding to the pool of money flowing to beneficial organizations.
Lastly, it is necessary to put into perspective that income from online gambling makes up a very small part of United Kingdom’s economy when looked at as a whole.