The new chair of GAMSTOP Group, the company that runs gambling support charity GAMSTOP, has promised to prioritise self-exclusion measures under his leadership.
Chris Pond, 73, who is the new chair, highlighted his plans as the new chair to put forward measures to make self-exclusion a top GAMSTOP priority.
He has only been in the role since the beginning of this month, but Pond is off to a flying start. He succeeded Jenny Watson CBE, 61, who was chair for seven years. Pond is a former MP of the UK Labour Party.
GAMSTOP has always been an advocate for self-exclusion, offering free self-exclusions to registered users as one of its responsible gambling measures.
What are Ponds’ plans and how will they work?
What Are The Self-Exclusion Plans?
Pond states that GAMSTOP can use the information it collects and existing data to guide research and government decisions on gambling reform, as well as work on other projects that prevent gambling problems in line with the country’s interests.
GAMSTOP is already highly successful in providing help and support for gambling harm. It also has a sister organisation, Moses, which is a self-exclusion scheme for betting shops.
Priorities that sit at the top of Pond’s list are strengthening the operational overlap between Moses and GAMSTOP and increasing awareness of self-exclusion tools. Specifically, he wants to raise awareness of self-exclusion help options among vulnerable groups by working with regulators and gambling treatment organisations.
Another unsurprising plan he mentioned was working with financial services, so their impact on supporting customers can be recognised.
Finally, Pond emphasised the need to share data with potential problem gamblers to intervene early in their gambling journey and embed self-exclusion tools in banking applications. Several banks in Ireland have recently adopted a self-exclusion card-blocking feature. The feature is requested by customers and then enabled on their bank card and account.
Before becoming chair of GAMSTOP Group, Pond worked as the Chair of the Money and Mental Health Advisory Board, and in various other roles in the financial sector.
On his new role at GAMSTOP, Pond said in a statement the company is “uniquely positioned to play a leading role in the national strategy to reduce gambling harms”.
In 2025 alone, GAMSTOP reported a 9% increase in registrations, showcasing that there work continues to have an impact.
Stay tuned for updates on Pond’s measures as the new GAMSTOP chair.
