Tag: gambling

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about NHS plan and gambling related harm

On 9th May 2019 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received a written answer to a question on the NHS and gambling related harm and rehabilitation:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: HL15360 To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Manzoor on 29 January (HL12939), when they expect the NHS to publish its “clear implementation framework” of the NHS Long Term Plan which would “set out how the commitments should be delivered by local systems and ensure transparency for patients and the public”. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about NHS plan and gambling related harm”

Bishop of St Albans welcomes Online Harms proposals, calls for action on gaming addiction

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, this is a vast subject, and I will limit my comments to just a few areas.

I and others on these Benches welcome this White Paper, in particular the attempt to rethink the way we see this whole area. In the past we brought in individual laws to deal with particular problems. My colleague the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Chelmsford has been arguing for some while that we need to see this as public space. We need to try to understand how we can regulate it from first principles in a way that guarantees the freedoms we want and the huge benefits ​that have come through the online world, which has made a huge and incalculable difference to our lives, but also protects the many people who are vulnerable. We have heard some account of just some of the problems some people have faced.

Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans welcomes Online Harms proposals, calls for action on gaming addiction”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government if it will ban or regulate loot boxes in online games

On 29th March 2019 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received a written answer to a question on online gaming.

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have, if any, to (1) ban loot boxes in online games, and (2) regulate such loot boxes through the Gambling Commission. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government if it will ban or regulate loot boxes in online games”

Bishop of St Albans asks about problem gambling related suicides

On 25th March 2019 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received a written answer to a question on problem gambling-related suicide:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of Gambling disorder, increased mortality, suicidality, and associated comorbidity: A longitudinal nationwide register study, published in November 2018; and in particular its finding that problem gamblers are 15 times more likely to take their own lives. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about problem gambling related suicides”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about gambling by students and young people

On 20th March 2019 the Bishop of St Albans Rt Revd Alan Smith, received written answers to three questions on gambling, students and young people:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans:

HL14424

(i) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the findings of the National Union of Students’ gambling survey, published on 25 February, that (1) three in five students have gambled in some way over the past 12 months, (2) almost one in ten have used all or some of their student loan to gamble, and (3) four per cent of respondents owed over £20,000 as a result of gambling.

(ii) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the findings of the National Union of Students’ gambling survey, published on 25 February, that 29 per cent of respondents were under the age of 16 when they had first gambled.

Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about gambling by students and young people”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about support for young gambling addicts

StAlbans051218On 5th February 2019 Lord Clark of Windermere asked the Government “when they intend to publish the NHS Workforce Implementation Plan which was announced in the NHS Long Term Plan, published on 7 January”. Rt Revd Alan Smith,  Bishop of St Albans, asked a follow up question about the support services made available to young people with gambling addictions.

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, it is encouraging to hear that the long-term plan will include funding for services for those with gambling addictions. With 430,000 gambling addicts in this country, of which 55,000 are teenagers, this is a really urgent matter. Can we press Her Majesty’s Government please to move on this quickly?

There is only one NHS clinic available at the moment. If funding is an issue, will the Government explore the possibility of introducing a mandatory levy on the gambling industry to pay for the cost to the NHS, which Simon Stevens suggests is £1.2 billion?

Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about support for young gambling addicts”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about gambling treatment in NHS long term plan

On 29th and 30th January the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received four written answers to questions on the NHS and gambling related harm and rehabilitation:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans:  To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many dedicated gambling clinics will be established as part of the NHS Long Term Plan, published on 7 January; where those clinics will be; what are the expected (1) capital, and (2) annual running costs of those facilities; and when they will be opened to patients. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about gambling treatment in NHS long term plan”