Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am disappointed that the Minister of State will not accept these amendments. I work in the field of addiction. I set up a charitable organisation that works with families impacted by addiction, including gambling addiction, substance misuse and alcohol addiction, and I see the devastation it causes daily. I see parents and partners who come to the RISE Foundation and who know that a loved one is after remortgaging the house. In fact, the inspiration for me to set up the Rise Foundation came when I was working as a therapist in the Rutland treatment centre and I watched a young woman walk out the gates of the centre with her two small children. Her partner, her husband, was in the centre for gambling. He had remortgaged the house. The bank was just about to take the house off her. She had no clue of the absolute devastation of the financial situation she was in until she realised he was going into a treatment centre. She had hardly any money for bus fare. All she was concerned about was, when he came out of the Rutland, how she would keep him from gambling again. There was no understanding of what she and her children were going through. That woman was so devastated by her husband's gambling addiction that she could not be present for those children. Those children were going to start looking after each other because she was so anxious, upset and worried, with sleepless nights. She was worried about what would happen when he came out.

I am giving the Minister of State that example only because we know this imposes huge costs on society. In fact, organisations like the RISE Foundation and many others are picking up the pieces for those families and trying to support them as best they can. We know that the likes of the Rutland and other gambling treatment centres are helping those who are in recovery from gambling addiction, but it is absolutely devastating. Gambling addiction has the highest rate of suicide. It is absolutely soul-destroying. I am only trying to give the Minister of State the human side of this. I work on this, as I said, daily. I know this is legislation about gambling, but the reality is horrific and really awful. As I said, because it is a secret addiction, nobody really knows. When somebody is abusing alcohol or drugs or whatever, you can see the impact, but you cannot really see the impact of gambling. That is why there are huge issues around suicide. All of a sudden, they wake up one morning and everything is gone and the family is devastated. I just wanted to highlight that. I hope that down the line the Minister of State might consider these amendments and really get an understanding of the impact and how devastating it is, not only for the person who has the addiction but for the family. There is also the legacy. Those children are so worried about mammy being worried about daddy and neither of them being present that the legacy continues because that is the only way they know how to go. They will continue with some kind of behaviour that is unhealthy. I just wanted to highlight that to the Minister of State. It has a huge cost, and I hope he will reconsider these amendments down the line.