A spokesperson for the Betting and Gaming Council, stated: “The methodology used in this survey is different to those previously conducted into betting and gaming.
“As a result, the Gambling Commission has been clear, GSGB should not be used to make direct comparisons with results from prior surveys, as a measure of addiction, or to gross up problem gambling prevalence to the whole population.
“Our members are concerned these findings may be unreliable because there is a significant risk GSGB overstates gambling participation and gambling related harm.
“Surveys using predominantly online self-completion consistently produce higher estimates of gambling participation and associated harms, compared to established alternative survey methods.
“The BGC and our members are committed to raising standards and we welcome any robust study that accurately gauges betting and gaming participation and problem gambling prevalence.
“This commitment is backed by record funding, with BGC members voluntarily donating over £170m over the past four years to independent Research, Prevention and Treatment services to tackle problem gambling and gambling related harm.
“Each month around 22.5 million people in Britain enjoy a bet and the overwhelming majority do so safely and responsibly.
“The most recent NHS Health Survey for England estimated that 0.4 per cent of the adult population are problem gamblers.”
