Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether it is his policy to treat gambling addiction as a public health matter; and what steps he plans to take with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle the effects of gambling addiction on society.

The Department commissioned Public Health England to undertake the first ever comprehensive evidence review on the public health harms relating to gambling in England. This will inform the Department’s future approach to treating gambling related harms. This will be published later this year.

The Department also treats gambling health harms as a health and care issue, including through provision of National Health Service treatment and advice and supporting the development of research and the evidence base. The NHS Long Term Plan made a commitment to expand the geographical coverage of NHS services for people with serious gambling problems.v