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February & March newsletter

Hello there,

I hope you’re keeping well.

Another busy month: still no White Paper but still a great deal to tell you about... On Wednesday 1 March, we held our fourth annual event at the House of Commons, so I’d like to start by saying a huge thank you to everyone who attended, especially all the families that made the journey to London.

Forty family members were present, and we were joined by over 20 MPs and parliamentarians, and many others, from healthcare professionals to campaigners for gambling reform. The focus this year was gambling’s threat to mental health and the regulatory changes needed to reduce the deaths.

Lucy Frazer KC MP made her first speech on gambling at our event.
Hosted by Liz and my MP Paul Blomfield, speakers included new DCMS Secretary of State Lucy Frazer KC MP, in what was her first speech on gambling since replacing Michelle Donelan in February. She was joined by Lucy Powell MP, Shadow DCMS Secretary and Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP, once again highlighting the breadth of cross-party support for gambling reform.
Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP is an ardent campaigner for gambling reform.
Professor Henrietta Bowden-Jones OBE, National Clinical Advisor on Gambling Harms, and Liz also gave powerful speeches – Liz’s speech is here in full. Stuart Andrew MP, the new gambling minister, was also able to join us at the end of the meeting.

In her speech, Lucy Frazer stressed her desire to hear directly from families and assured us that the White Paper is an “absolute priority”. Of course, we share all the frustrations about the delays to its release – but she came across as being genuine in wanting to understand the key issues and to get it right.

The number of changes to the ministerial team over the course of the review is ridiculous and we can only hope that we have some stability to get the White Paper published and support the future consultation and implementation of changes. We are now expecting that it will be out in April – soon after the Easter recess.

The event was a big success, not just in terms of gaining political support within Westminster but also giving some families the chance to engage with their MPs and others to speak with the SoS and other politicians. You can read more about it here.
A small selection of MPs that attended our event to support GwL families.
Moving on, you may have seen that Annie Ashton handed her petition in at 10 Downing Street last month. Annie, who lost her husband Luke in 2021, is calling on the government to publish the White Paper immediately to stop gambling suicides.

Nearly 90,000 people have signed and you can still add your name here.  Well done to Annie, whose tireless efforts have resulted in this fantastic achievement and demonstration of public support for life-saving gambling reforms.
Annie Ashton.
Last week Judith Bruney appeared on an ITV Tonight special on gambling. Judith was incredibly powerful in calling out how a predatory gambling company targeted her son Chris in the days before he died.

John Myers also made a very strong contribution to a BBC piece that aired last month. James Grimes, GwL’s Head of Education, and Dr Matt Gaskell were also involved.

One last thing –  this Wednesday Liz and Will, GwL’s Strategy Director, have been invited to speak at a webinar hosted by the US Public Health Advocacy Institute. The webinar – “It's Not the Dough, it's the Dopamine: The Dangerous Myth of the Responsible Gambling Model” – is between 5 and 7pm UK time and will feature a host of academics and healthcare professionals. You can sign up here.

All from me for now and as ever, thank you for your support.
Charles Ritchie
Co-chair of Trustees, Gambling with Lives


 
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