Northern Ireland Politician Wants UK Internet Gambling Reform

This story was published more than 12 years ago.

Northern Ireland politician Alex Maskey has called for gambling laws within the United Kingdom to be updated to deal with internet gambling according to a report in the Irish press.

Maskey has reportedly urged his colleagues to pressure Prime Minister David Cameron to update the gambling laws of Britain and Northern Ireland, stating his concern that internet gambling is causing problem gambling to grow.

"Increasing numbers of people were being drawn into gambling addiction." Maskey claimed. "We need to make sure that those people who fall foul of that are protected in some way or other."

"Therefore, I believe it's a growing problem, because the more people that are enticed into that web, for most people it may be very interesting and they may be well able to control it, the law of averages tells us some people fall foul of that."

He then went on to say that his Social Development Committee was "in somewhat of a limbo because we are waiting to hear whether the department or the minister are actually intending to do anything".

"If they tell us they are intending to do nothing, then I think our committee would take the view that the department, at the very least, needs to lobby whatever government department has the responsibility for this type of industry, because it does cause harm to members of the public which we represent."