In the UK, the government there is calling for the introduction of an international summit to discuss the benefits and problems of online gambling. Don't make the mistake however of thinking that the purpose of this is to solely discuss how such gambling might adversely effect users - also on the agenda is an interest in collecting tax from online gambling sites, which is potentially quite a big money maker.

Tessa Jowell, culture minister, told the FT: "This is a global problem and requires a global solution, which is why this summit is important."

A spokeswoman for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport confirmed the proposal and that Australia, South Africa and New Zealand have expressed an interest.