Once again, the controversial question of whether gambling should be legalised in Bermuda has reared its head.

This is one of those issues that never seems to go away, whether it concerns casinos, gaming machines, shipboard gambling or, in this case, the recent upsurge in popularity of poker nights.

While the ban on poker nights concerns the relatively narrow question of whether bars can stage the contests under the terms of their liquor licences, the bigger question is whether individuals are entitled to spend their money as they wish or whether the state has the right to, in effect, protect people from themselves.

There are, of course, other secondary questions as well. Casinos are seen by many as a way of helping to revive tourism, and the examples of places like Las Vegas — which is essentially a gambling company town — adds fuel to the debate.

Similarly, governments around the world increasingly see gambling as a painless tax, with income from betting or lotteries making up a substantial part of public revenues.

What Bermuda has to decide is whether the well documented social problems that accompany the legalisation of gambling worth the apparent happiness that comes with it, along with the revenue that goes to the public purse?

This newspaper has long held that they are not. Problems with gambling addiction, crime and the social effects on families seem to outweigh the benefits. However, and despite the logical inconsistency of the position, this newspaper has said that if Government established a lottery, and the proceeds, administered by an independent and non-partisan body, to worthy causes such as scholarships, sports and the arts, then this would be a fair compromise.

Then, at least, some good will come out of the process at the same time that people are able to have a flutter, albeit one in which the odds of success will be very low.

The other major problem for Bermuda concerns the antiquated nature of the gambling laws and the raft of inconsistencies that exist as a result. Why, for example, is it all right to bet on horse races or football matches overseas, but to be barred from placing the same bets at home? Similarly, why can churches and other organisations run successful bingo competitions when poker players are treated like pariahs? And then there’s Crown and Anchor, which is so embedded in the national culture that a ban at Cup Match is unthinkable.

With the advent of the Internet and high speed telecommunications, anyone who wishes to gamble can do so with ease, but none of the money stays in Bermuda, apart, presumably from the occasional winnings, most of which presumably go straight back out.

And that does not even allow for the residents who jet off the Island to gamble in Las Vegas, Atlantic City and elsewhere.

What is needed is a full review of the whole question of gaming in Bermuda. This would include a serious and credible examination of the very real social costs, consideration of what forms of gambling, if any, should be allowed on the Island, and recommendations for changes in the current loophole-ridden law.