The NHS is set to expand its services to support gambling addicts this summer following soaring demand.
New data shows that nearly 1,400 people were referred for help last year, a rise of one-third on the previous year and nearly 80 per cent higher than two years ago.
The seven new clinics will add to eight existing ones to treat around 3,000 gambling addicts per year through cognitive behavioural therapy and support groups.
Bombarded
The Gambling Commission estimates that there are 138,000 high-risk gamblers in Great Britain, with a further 1.3 million considered moderate to low-risk.
NHS Chief Executive Amanda Pritchard said, “people can gamble on their phone at the touch of a button and everyone, young and old, is bombarded with adverts encouraging them to take part”.
She said gambling “has the power to destroy people’s lives, with referrals up by more than a third compared to last year”.
NHS Mental Health Director Claire Murdoch expressed her hope that “further action can be taken to protect the young from being bombarded by gambling ads while watching sport”.
Destroys lives
Last week, the Leicester area coroner criticised gambling company Betfair for failing to intervene when Luke Ashton killed himself after betting more than 100 times per day.
Ashton’s widow, Annie, said the coroner’s report vindicated her belief that “gambling destroys families and causes suicides”.
In April, the Government’s long-delayed gambling review was criticised for ‘kicking the can down the road’ by submitting the majority of its proposed measures to consultation rather than seeking to introduce them directly into law.
It does not aim to implement its key measures before summer 2024.
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