Great Britain’s Gambling Commission has appointed addiction specialists Virve Marionneau and Spencer Murch to its Advisory Board for Safer Gambling (ABSG).
Marionneau and Murch join the ABSG with strong backgrounds in gambling addiction and preventing harm. The ABSG provides independent advice on these issues to the Gambling Commission.
The ABSG was previously known as the Responsible Gambling Strategy Board before being renamed in April 2019.
It helped the GC establish its National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms which ran between April 2019 and April 2022. The board subsequently published three annual reports on the national strategy. It also advised the GC on its review of the Gambling Act in 2023.
Marionneau urges cross-sector collaboration
Sociologist Marionneau is director of the Centre for Research on Addiction, Control and Governance at the University of Helsinki, Finland.
Her research focuses on gambling-related topics including regulation, digital gambling environments, industry practices and qualitative investigation of experiences and harms.
“I’m honoured to join the ABSG, especially at a time when increasing international and cross-sector collaboration is needed to regulate and control gambling,” Marionneau said.
“I am happy to be a part of this impressive team of experts. I look forward to advising particularly on regulatory practices and research from other jurisdictions.”
Murch to focus on AI for safer gambling
Meanwhile, Murch is a cognitive psychologist and post-doctoral fellow at the University of Calgary in Canada. His work covers the cognitive, behavioural and psychophysiological profiles of addictive digital product use.
Murch also studies new opportunities for improving human health with artificial intelligence technologies (AI). This includes how to detect, intervene and ultimately prevent gambling-related problems.
“As AI technologies and digital gambling opportunities continue to evolve, it is more important than ever to understand clearly the threats posed to human health in the UK and around the world,” Murch said. “The mandate of this group is important, timely and represents an opportunity to transform research insights into working harm prevention policies.”
Appointments “fortunate” for Advisory Board for Safer Gambling
ABSG chair Anna van der Gaag welcomed the double appointment. She said that the group is fortunate to have Marionneau and Murch as members.
“They are highly respected academics, both with a strong record of achievement in the field of gambling studies,” van der Gaag said. “Together, they will expand the national and international research expertise we offer to the Commission.
“Gambling is a global business and the regulatory challenges faced in different jurisdictions have much in common. I’ve no doubt they will bring valuable new insights to an ever-expanding range of topics which inform policy and practice in gambling regulation.”
In February the board also welcomed behavioural data scientist Dr David Zendle and Dr Steve Sharman, psychologist and research fellow at the National Addiction Centre, King’s College London, in February.
