"Gambling addicts soar by 25% under Labour's lax laws"

"The number of people with gambling problems has risen by 25 per cent since Labour relaxed the gambling laws"

These are just a couple of the headlines in yesterday's papers, prompted by the publication of the gambling addiction charity Gamcare's annual report, which revealed a boom in online betting and a huge increase in bets on sports events over the last decade. Given that debt is known to be one of the key pathways to poverty, it is particularly concerning that the average amount of debt per gambler seeking counselling has jumped from £13,800 to more than £17,500 in just 12 months.

And yet, perhaps it's a little unfair to place all the blame on the Government. For, in truth, gambling is probably even more endemic in our culture and encouraged in society than most of us would usually be willing to admit. After all, whenever we take risks that provide no benefits to others but solely in the expectation that certain assets will appreciate in value, we are simply gambling upon future events. Such assets might include shares that are thought to be takeover targets, property that is to be rented out, futures contracts, art or antiques. As one of our Cambridge Papers noted more than a decade ago, "To the extent that such speculation achieves a return, it is the result of favourable circumstances and superior knowledge rather than productive activity ... Indeed, in volatile markets, speculation is essentially motivated by the desire to gain at the expense of the next sucker who buys high and sells cheap. As such, it is merely redistributive and presumes upon the future."

In light of the recent economic collapse, perhaps it is time that we all admitted we have a problem with gambling and need to re-evaluate how we save and invest.

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