Gambling addiction turned me into a ‘broken man’, says Glasgow addict

A former addict of fixed-odds betting terminals has said the machines left him a “broken man”.

Martin Paterson, 58, from Coatbridge near Glasgow, lost thousands of pounds after becoming addicted in 2005.

He described himself as “just a normal punter” until he started playing on the terminals, which have allowed people to stake up to £100.

Mr Paterson now campaigns for changes to legislation around the machines, which he says left him “a possessed animal”.

The former taxi driver was gambling away £60 in the space of 20 minutes at the height of his addiction, stopping only when his son passed away unexpectedly at the age of just 29.

He said: “Once you walk in the door [of the betting shop] it takes over your life. I don’t understand it myself.

“It’s not all about the thousands of pounds. My £60 was more important to me than thousands.

“The next thing you know you’re borrowing from lenders to pay the bills. You can’t go and tell your wife.

“I was constantly gambling, to the point it interfered with my work because I didn’t have change to give customers. I lost everything.”

Mr Paterson added: “You end up a broken man. I realised I wasn’t a father, I wasn’t a husband. I was a possessed animal.”

Mr Paterson – who said he most regretted the time he lost with loved ones – is now a landscape gardener who has fully recovered from his addiction with the help of his family and employers.

He is now closely watching the government’s consultation and said anything more than £2 stakes with a gap of at least 60 seconds would be “catastrophic”.