Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has provided guidance to primary care providers on the referral of gambling disorder cases into specialist care pathways.

NHS England has commissioned the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to develop a national clinical guideline on the treatment of problem gambling. This will focus on identification, diagnosis and management of gambling-related harms and will support clinicians, including primary care providers, in referring people experiencing gambling disorder to appropriate treatment and support. Publication of the guideline is expected in 2024.

The Department continues to support the National Health Service with the phased expansion of up to 15 specialist problem gambling clinics by 2023/24. Work continues to explore how best to use existing treatment models to reach those most in need of support.