Should online gambling be made illegal? If you’re asking this question then you may as well ask should selling alcohol online be made illegal? There is a word in the dictionary called restraint; along with it you could throw in self-discipline, self-control and common sense.

Gambling is a dangerous addiction for some people, but for the large majority it’s the chance to have a flutter or a bit of fun without having to leave the comfort of their own home. In fact it doesn’t matter if it’s online or in the high street, the addiction would never go away. If the said person is so inclined to gamble away money they don’t have then they’ll do it anywhere that feeds their addiction.

In my opinion there are too many people in this country who are quick to jump at the provider of services rather than look at the main source of the problem. The majority of the time it’s the people rather than the product.

Another opinion on this subject brings into question the offer of free bets by online companies as a way of attracting punters. Well this is after all business and every business will at one stage offer a promotion to get ahead of the competition. There’s nothing wrong with it. If a person is stupid enough to think that a betting company is giving the punter something for nothing then more fool them. At the end of the day betting companies cannot be held responsible for peoples actions, it is the ability of every sane man or woman to say no and stop.

Gambling addiction is nothing new; it’s been around for centuries so why should doing it online be any different. The chance of gaining more by taking a chance is nothing new, every successful businessman at one stage or another will have taken a risk to make a fortune. I suppose there is an obsessive nature that can come with a little bit of success, you win some money and instead of stopping you want to win more because it was so easy. But again it just comes back to having the restraint and common sense to stop.

If you campaign to make online gambling illegal then you may as well carry on and seek to stop all online activity of anything that has been known to cause addiction in some cases. So the likes of Virgin Wines, Sainsburys, Tescos etc will all have to stop selling alcohol because some people get addicted. Amazon will have to stop selling video games because some people get addicted. Where do you draw the line? The truth is you can’t and why should some killjoys spoil it for the rest of us.

I for one am in favour of having gambling facilities online, it’s good to be able to have the occasional flutter without setting foot in the smoke filled haze of the high street betting shop. You can also take your time, brush up on the odds and explore the realm of betting without the anxiety caused by going into a betting shop and being pretty clueless. I’ll admit I’ve bet online when it comes to the Grand National, I’ve played a few online bingo games but neither has made me want to put my car or cash I don’t have on the line.