The number of gamblers has jumped since the government abolished a registration period
The number of gamblers has jumped in Britain since the government abolished a 24-hour registration period for new visitors.
Casinos report 100,000 new visitors have entered their doors since the waiting period was lifted five weeks ago, the Times of London said. They predict there will be 250,000 new gamblers by the end of the year.
The number of gambling addicts was already up before the rule change. With more casinos expected to open in the next few years, experts predict problem gambling will skyrocket.
"This is a larger increase than we had feared, all in just five weeks," said Maj. Bill Cochrane of the Salvation Army. "The cooling-off period helped to ensure that people made a conscious decision before gambling in a casino on highly addictive games."
Until this year, 2.7 percent of the population -- about 1.8 million people -- were involved in casino gambling. The amount spent in casinos rose about 30 percent between 1999 and 2004.
