The British National Lottery faces increased pressure to signpost problem gambling treatment support services, as a mandatory requirement of its marketing campaigns and products.
The demand is led by GambleAware, which believes that the National Lottery has lagged in its efforts to support problem gambling treatment services and raise awareness of gambling harms to an audience of eight million people playing National Lottery draws each week.
New research by GambleAware warns that up to 600,000 lottery customers may be experiencing problem gambling. That figure, combined with the Lottery’s mass-market reach, has prompted calls for immediate reforms to ensure it no longer stands apart from other gambling incumbents when it comes to signposting support services.
Despite its status as a lower-risk form of gambling, campaigners are adamant that the lottery “is not risk-free”. New data from GambleAware’s forthcoming 2024 Annual Treatment and Support Survey, conducted by YouGov with nearly 18,000 UK adults, reveals a decisive public mood:
- 84% of the public acknowledge the Lottery is a form of gambling;
- 46% disagree that its products are harmless;
- 74% want clear support information on products;
- 69% believe advertising should direct players to support services like GambleAware.
The charity warns that the National Lottery’s failure to implement signposting across physical and digital touchpoints from scratchcards to app-based instant wins leaves it an “outlier” in a gambling landscape that is increasingly focused on duty of care and public health risks.
“When I gave up gambling and self-excluded myself from places I could gamble, the one thing I couldn’t bar myself from was playing the lottery in shops,” said one woman with lived experience of harm.
“In my early recovery, I bought £450/$570 worth of scratch cards. Later, I moved to online instant games with jackpot prizes that looked and sounded like fruit machines. I was lured in, and I know others who’ve had similar experiences. Putting support information on tickets and cards would help so much.”
Another respondent described financial hardship triggered by unchecked app-based spending: “I got a bit of a habit with the instant scratch cards on the app… it did lead me into financial difficulty; I wasn’t able to buy food for about a week because I’d spent the food shopping money on scratch cards.”
The concerns have long-standing political support. A 2022 report by the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee explicitly recommended the Lottery introduce signposting to services such as the National Gambling Helpline a move still not actioned by Allwyn UK, the Lottery’s current operator.
Andy Boucher, Chair of Trustees at GambleAware, said the National Lottery must show the same level of responsibility as others:
“We recognise the great work the National Lottery has done supporting a range of worthy causes over many years. In the public’s mind, it is there to do good in the community, and so we believe it is also the right thing for it to look after the people who play the National Lottery.
“Allwyn has previously stated that ‘player safety is our top priority’. It must now live up to those words and play a critical role in protecting people from gambling harms, which are a serious public health issue that can drive societal inequalities, worsen mental health issues, and increase pressure on our overburdened health system.”
Frontline treatment providers are also backing the call. Ian Semel, CEO of Breakeven, a member of the National Gambling Support Network, said:
“At Breakeven, we’ve delivered support for over 20 years. Around 11% of clients who came to us in 2024 disclosed that the National Lottery or scratch cards were causing them gambling harm.
“That’s why we’ve joined the call for the Lottery to signpost to support services like us. People need to know where to get help — the moment they realise they might be at risk.”
The campaign places the issue of signposting at the intersection of corporate responsibility, public health, and the regulatory credibility of Allwyn UK.
Campaigners demand urgent changes due to no specific reforms being applied to the National Lottery as part of the Gambling Review’s White Paper, published in April 2023.
As of February 2024, Allwyn UK has formally assumed stewardship of the National Lottery, overseeing the new 10-year licence.
The new steward expressed its support for key government interventions introduced in 2021 to raise the minimum age for all National Lottery products to 18, which came into legal effect on 22 April 2021, banning the sales to under-18s of Lottery, EuroMillions, scratch cards and Set-4-life games on retail and online platforms.
Don’t forget to subscribe to our Telegram channel!
