The National Lottery

The National Lottery - Update
By George Curry

©1997 The Christian Institute

Contents

The National Lottery: Winners and Losers

Who are the winners?

The losers

Second weekly draw

Boom in Gambling

The Slippery Slope

References

The National Lottery: Winners and Losers
Who are the winners?

First, according to the Prime Minister, it is "Britain's charities, sports, arts and heritage." The areas of life that "make up the rich tapestry of our nation's life" but which, prior to the introduction of the National Lottery in November 1994, often lost out. In two years some £2.5bn has gone to so-called good causes.

Secondly, the thousands who have had a share, no matter how small, in the £3bn given out as prizes to date. But especially the nearly 300 people who have become millionaires.

Thirdly, the millions who have bought tickets and whose Saturday nights have been changed for good. Gambling, it is said, is fun. Hence, according to Tim Holley, Camelot's chief executive, 30 million people now play the lottery on a regular basis. (1)

And fourthly, those people who benefit directly from community funded projects.

That, it seems, is the full extent of Mr Major's list. (2) But, if these people are the so-called winners, who are the losers?

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The losers

It is estimated that "good causes" would now be £7m better-off if our politicians had thought about what to do with the interest accrued on unclaimed prizes. As it is, Parliament did not. Nor has Camelot (the operator) heeded the pleas of Oflot (the regulator) that this money be given to good causes. (3)

Camelot has done very well out of the lottery. Overall net-profits to date total £78.1m. A further £10m in dividends has been paid to Camelot's shareholders. But in the six months up to 14 September 1996 profits dropped by £2.8m to £20.8m. This was expected as during that period overall sales slipped from £2.5bn to just under £2.1bn, mainly because scratch card sales have more than halved. They tumbled from £871m to £419m. As a result it is reckoned that good causes are no less than £110m worse-off. (4)

Mr Davis, the Director-General of Oflot, is also a definite loser. During the summer the National Audit Office published a report on the Lottery. According to the Labour MP Alan Williams, it exposes the "worst administrative incompetence" that he has ever encountered. Apparently of the 21 checks devised to be run by Oflot on Camelot only one had been fully implemented. (5) As a result one national newspaper has called for his resignation or dismissal. (6)

Lord Wakeham, Chairman of the British Horse Racing Board and former leader of the House of Lords, recently told the House that several racing trusts have been "badly hit" by the Lottery's introduction in November 1994. It has also had a serious effect on betting turnover and the betting levy. Four hundred betting shops have closed, 3,400 jobs have been lost, and betting shops profits have fallen by £52m, or 35%! This has led to fears, says Lord Wakeham, that betting shop closures will increase the risk of illegal gambling . (7)

Football, greyhound racing and the Foundation for Sports and the Arts have also been adversely affected. Football pools receipts are down 40%, with a further reduction of 20% expected. This could jeopardise their work on the safety of grounds. (8) The Football Trust chairman, Lord Aberdare, says that "the plain bland truth is that the Football Trust has seen its income reduced by over 50% since the Lottery came into being." (9) The deputy chairman of the Foundation for Sports and Arts, Lord Brabazon of Tara, is of the opinion that the foundation's future is now "precarious." He also voiced concerns that the Lottery is moving towards gaining a monopoly in giving grants. (10) We shall return to this point in a moment, but in the meantime we also note that Lord Newall, chairman of the British Greyhound Racing Board, blames the Lottery, "at least in part", for the closure of three tracks and the expected closure of another soon. (11)

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Second weekly draw

To add insult to injury, and so as to try and maintain sales, dividends and profits, Camelot has recently announced that it will introduce a second weekly draw as from 5 February 1997. The plan is to boost sales by 20%, although it is recognised that scratch card sales may further decline. At present the sale of Instants has flattened at £17m a week, whilst the weekly draw sales on the Lottery itself have settled at £69m. (12)

Furthermore, the expected increased deregulation of the gambling industry continues its forward march. The Tote has been given the go-ahead to take bets on foreign lotteries, thus bringing the Horserace Totaliser Board into line with high street betting shops. However, despite this concession the campaign goes on for betting to be permitted on the National Lottery and for the Tote to be allowed to compete more effectively with both betting shops and the Lottery. (13)

And, the government on 12 November 1996 issued a second consultation paper on Casino Deregulation. (14) If accepted this will "extend hard gambling to 20 new areas", (15) including cathedral cities and spa towns. Other key proposals include: allowing casino members immediate access to gaming facilities in other casinos within the same group; allowing applications by post rather than in person at a casino; reducing the waiting period for membership from 48 to 24 hours; allowing debit cards but not credit cards; allowing advertisements in non-national publications, such as newspapers and magazines; allowing casinos slot machines with unlimited stakes and payouts as abroad (the current jackpot is £250); and allowing up to 3 slot machines per gaming table. (16)

The deadline for responses to both consultation papers is 31 January 1997. It is anticipated that many of the proposals could be quickly processed through Parliament in secondary legislation. If that proves to be the case a new relaxed regime could be in place before the General Election.

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Boom in Gambling

It seems, then, that Lord Donoughue is not exaggerating when he says that "we are creating a boom in gambling" and that "we are in danger of creating a bonanza society, where citizens see their purpose as to win the Big One." (17) A recent academic study, partly funded by the Home Office, claims that Britain already has 1.5 million "problem gamblers". (18) Empirical evidence already exists to show that the Lottery is making the problem worse. And Revd Bill Wallace, the Convenor of the Church of Scotland's Board of Social Responsibility, recently claimed that the "human costs of gambling is growing since the start of the Lottery." (19) We need to know, he said, where our "politicians stand? Do they want a fairer, more caring, more moral society?" (20)

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The Slippery Slope

The question needs to be asked of politicians of all parties. None has plans to abolish the lottery or to reverse the slide towards increased de-regulation of the gambling industry. Dr Moran, the chairman of the National Council on Gambling, believes that we are on "a slippery slope" fraught with "tremendous dangers." (21) He enjoins us to remember that "gambling isn't harmless" and that "the history of gambling is not a happy one. The more gambling there is,the more casualties there are." (22)

Nor will the proposals for change recently announced by the Labour Party (2 December 1996) put a stop to what Cummins and Whelan call "the further politicisation of the charitable sector by the Lottery." In their opinion "it weakens one of the pillars of civil society." (23) That is the inevitable result of a form of state sponsored gambling that has been patronised by no less than 90% of the populace since its inception.

The average person spends £2.48 per week, with the most being spent in the north-east (£3.15 per week). (24) According to research by MORI and the Abbey National the average player's idea of lottery heaven is a home in the country. (25) The biggest category of players is people in the 25-34 age group. (26) Who are these people? The parents of today and tomorrow.

Where is our society and culture going? What will be the long-term effects of all this on the moral and spiritual fabric of the nation?

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References

1 The Times, 20.11.96
2 The Journal, Newcastle upon Tyne, 14.11.96, p9
3 The Times, 15.11.96
4 The Times, 20.11.96
5 The Times, 15.11.96
6 idem
7 Andrew Evans, PA News, S2100, 20.11.96
8 idem
9 idem
10 idem
11 idem
12 The Times, 20.11.96
13 Rowan Dore, PA New, S1787, 20.11.96
14 The first, on Casinos and Bingo Clubs, was issued on 27 February 1996
15 The Times, 13.11.96
16 see Second Consultation on Casino Deregulation, Home Office, November 1996; Alison Little, PA News, S4600, 12.11.96; and Roger Williams, PA News, S9722, 16.10.96
17 Andrew Evans, op cit
18 Alison Little, op cit
19 Aine Harrington, PA News, S4463, 12.11.96
20 idem
21 Roger Williams, op cit
22 idem
23 R Cummins and R Whelan, Making a Lottery of Good Causes, IEA, London, 1995, p18
24 The Journal, 14 November 1996
25 Nick Hudson, PA News, S4411, 12.11.96
26 The Journal, 14 November 1996

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