The parents of a young problem gambler, who took his own life in 2017 by jumping off the building in Vietnam, have said that the authorities are not interested in knowing the reasons why a 24-year-old man hooked on licensed gambling products committed suicide.
The parents of the young problem gambler had insisted on the UK Government being investigated for liability on its part for gambling sector regulation and whether their son was warned about the possible risks that could occur as a result of gambling.
As revealed by The Guardian, the Government’s legal representatives did not want a detailed judicial inquiry because they are trying to prevent the state’s failures from being unveiled.
The lawyers on the part of the authorities had requested for a cursory inquest to be conducted by the coroner. However, in his ruling issued on September 25th, the senior coroner of Sheffield, David Urpeth, said that a full inquest should take place. The inquest is set to investigate the regulatory mechanisms used by the UK Government in relation to the gambling sector and whether the late problem gambler was warned about the risks associated with gambling addiction. According to reports, the legal procedure might take place in February 2021.
Sheffield’s Senior Coroner to Investigate Available Gambling Addiction Treatment in the UK
The senior coroner would investigate not only how the young gambling addict came to the decision to take his life by jumping off a building in Hanoi in November 2017. He would also check how the gambling addiction of the young man was treated in the UK and what medical treatment was available to him at the time when he got hooked on gambling, and whether he was warned of the risk associated with compulsive gambling behaviour.
The inquest, however, will not explore any possible flaws in the gambling regulatory body of the country, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC).
The parents of the young man have spent the past three years insisting on in-depth checks of the regulation of the country’s gambling sector and the treatment provided by the authorities to people who, like their late son, are finding it hard to control their gambling habits. According to the couple, it is the shortcomings on the part of the UK gambling regulatory authorities to treat problem gambling issues that had led to their son’s death.
As The Guardian reported, at the hearing that took place on September 25th at the town hall, Sheffield’s senior coroner insisted on his claim that an inquest was not the right forum for investigating whether the UK gambling watchdog was doing its job properly. The adequacy of the Gambling Act of 2005 would not be explored, too. However, the senior coroner said he understood the parents’ desire to make the authorities learn their lessons, especially when it comes to young people’s deaths associated with gambling services.
The parents have also insisted that the investigation into the regulation of the UK’s gambling sector is even more necessary, considering the fact their son got hooked on gambling at the age of 17.
- Author
Daniel Williams
