It has been a tale of mismanagement and mistakes throughout, but no-one is taking the blame or responsibility. The Government, the Commission, the former GambleAware – none have come forward to say they mismanaged the transfer of Gambling Levy funding to the third sector in what should have been a landmark achievement of getting money to support services for the vulnerable. If this was the industry, fines and sanctions would have been despatched all over the place. The hypocrisy and ‘it wasn’t our fault’ culture beggars belief. They all played their part … so, should they all take the hit. Time for the fine them, sack them and sanction them culture to kick in – and god knows, one or all them deserves a good kick in anyway.
GamCare has reported that hundreds of people have had their access to treatment and support services disrupted as a result of the transition to the new mandatory levy funding system.
In its Trustees Report for 2025/26, the organisation highlighted how delayed commissioning decisions and disorganisation had a “significant” impact on the effectiveness of those providing the services.
“The transition from the voluntary to a statutory levy changed how services are funded, with commissioning responsibility moving to five separate bodies across England, Scotland and Wales, each at a different stage of readiness and without a clear coordination infrastructure in place to support such a significant change,” said chair Margot Daly.
“Where funding decisions were communicated at short notice, and where service provision elsewhere in the system changed, GamCare drew on its own integrated infrastructure and financial reserves to ensure people who needed help were not turned away. Since the end of the financial year, that demand has continued: as of the date of this report, GamCare has provided support to hundreds of additional people whose access to services was disrupted by the transition.”
Originally published on Coinslot on September 7, 2026. Republished with permission.