Unregulated gambling apps, easy access to bookies, and late night casinos are contributing to a rise in gambling addiction among Galway students.
The incoming NUIG Students Union Education Officer Cathal Sherlock said students seemed to be unaware of how addictive gambling apps could be.
“They can be downloaded onto anyone’s phone, you can create an account with any of the companies and transfer money from one account to another. Before you know it, your money has disappeared,” he explained.
“I think with gambling online people don’t realise they are getting addicted because they can do it in the library in between writing an essay instead of physically going to the bookies.
“That said, I’ve been in to one particular bookies three times and have always noticed a lot of students in there. Another problem in Galway is the amount of casinos here, which students go to after the nightclubs.”
The Union of Students in Ireland recently passed a motion at their national congress mandating the national vice president of welfare to “work with the relevant organisations to develop a campaign to inform students of the effects of gambling and recognising an addiction.”
For more on student gambling addictions, see this week’s Galway City Tribune
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