DRASTIC RESTRICTIONS URGED

Chronicle (Levin), 15 December 1949, Page 5

DRASTIC RESTRICTIONS URGED

LONDON^ Dec. 13'. The Anglican church and other Protesta.nt chnrch organisations to.day siibmitted ' a memorandum to the Royal Commission on Betting advocating diastic restrictions on raeehorse and greyhound betting and1 the prohibition ,of football pools. The Bishop of London (Dr. Wand) submitted the memorandiim, wliich said of horse racing: '-'It is suggested that every endeavour should be made to limit beeting to" that whxch takou plaee on the course itsel-f. The extension of totalisator betting to off the course- is most und'esirable.." The memorandum held that there could be- no moral distinetion drawn between gambling on horses. or dogs-, and gambling on stocks, and eominereial holdings. It also said: " The- church . reeognises the presenee of the gambling evil witllin Itself. The church d:oes not eome before the- commission with cAmpletely cleam hands."' The memorandum tirged the elimination- of street betting and all fbrms of touting. ' ' There should1 be noi devel-op-ment in the direction of betting offiees to whieh people resort as. in Eire," it stated. ' ' Football pools eonstitute a menace to. soeial arirl personal life, and are a : form of ex^ioitation for wMch'-therp is. no justification, " said the memorandum. A resolution from the eonference of Anglo-Jewisk preae-hers was put before the Commission. It declared that the - Jewish eonference was- in wlioleheartedl i agreement with the views that the "forces of religion should unite to i cheek the moral and soeial evils. wbi/eh - result fro^u the prevalence of gamb- , ling.. ' '