Gambling helpline funding slashed

The Massachusetts Council on Compulsive Gambling had its budget cut in recent cost-saving measures, the Boston Globe reports. The State Treasurer says there's no rationale behind the decision and it should be reversed. Globe columnist Adrian Walker complains the State has broken the compact with its stakeholders, sending a bad message at the worst possible time, just before the stressful holiday season that can bring gambling problems to a head.

As the state lotteries of the world raise the bar, adopting a stringent set of responsible gaming principles and performance indicators, you have to wonder why lottery officials weren't consulted before the cuts were announced. Or indeed why Adrian Walker didn't ask them to explain the apparent "contradiction of a state that publicly frowns on gambling running an enormous gambling business".