Fear that superstitious will be vulnerable in lottery daily draw

The Methodist Church has long been concerned about the impact ofNational Lottery games upon children and vulnerable people, and hasbeen pleased to see the strict regulations that have been put inplace to protect these groups from harm.

But as the National Lottery Daily Draw is launched today, asenior Methodist spokesperson warns that an opportunity to win onsix days a week increases opportunities for gambling - and moreworryingly it may play on people's superstitions about "lucky"numbers.

Ms Rachel Lampard, Methodist Secretary for Parliamentary andPolitical Affairs said: "Players of the Saturday Lotto draws oftenplay the same set of numbers each time. Camelot could have decidedto introduce a different game for each day of the week with adifferent matrix of numbers for every day. The introduction of aDaily Draw using the same format means that some people may feelthat they have to play every day in order not to miss out onwinning if "their" numbers come up.

"Camelot will need to carry out early and frequent research intothe changes in the patterns of play in the Daily Draw to ensurethat this new game does not result in people feeling pressured toplay more frequently and therefore losing larger amounts ofmoney."