Bereaved Mum Backs Require Gambling Regulation

4 February 2026
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Helen CattPolitical Editor, BBC South East


A mother whose child took his own life after ending up being addicted to gambling is backing calls from MPs to deal with the routine as a public health risk.


Lesley Wade, from Minster on the Isle of Sheppey, lost her "household orientated" and "fun" boy Aaron Armstrong aged 30 in 2014.


She said it had actually taken her several years to that addiction indicated "the onus wasn't all on him" to stop betting.


The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), the main industry body, stated the "overwhelming bulk" of individuals who gamble do so "securely and properly".


'All gone'


Armstrong, who worked as a scaffolder, played in a swimming pool league and was an eager golf enthusiast.


He also loved football, often banking on matches.


She stated her son increasingly started to ask her for cash in 2013.


"I hadn't confessed to myself the amount of money he was asking me for at various times," she said.


She recalled one celebration when it was his turn to spend for a Friday morning breakfast he regularly had with buddies.


Wade said: "He sounded me up and asked me if I might transfer some money to spend for the breakfast.


"He 'd just been paid that early morning and he had no cash in his account. It was all gone."


She said she now believes he had been resting on the scaffolding, gambling on his phone.


Armstrong's relationship with his partner broke down and he was asked to leave his flat.


The scaffolder went on to look for aid however, in 2014, he took his own life.


After her son's death, Wade discovered a variety of e-mails from gambling companies offering incentives such as financed journeys to see his preferred football group.


She said: "I found that he had a deal of a totally free bet for ₤ 1,000 and I thought we 'd barred him from all the websites. There were lots of e-mails however that's the one that actually protruded."


Public health problem


Wade later fulfilled Sittingbourne and Sheppey MP Kevin McKenna, who has considering that made marketing on betting damages a top priority.


He is now among a variety of MPs, including Worthing West's Dr Beccy Cooper, who are campaigning for a change in how society - and the federal government - methods gambling.


McKenna said there were about 500 deaths by suicide related to gambling a year in the nation.


"If it was anything else we 'd be taking a look at it as a public health problem," he included.


It would shift the focus from specific responsibility to acknowledging it as a danger to the broader population as a whole.


Treating it as a public health concern could include actions like higher regulation of betting marketing and eliminating the most addicting items.


The Betting and Gaming Council stated the "frustrating majority" of the 22.5 million people who wager in Britain did so "securely" and "properly".


According to a Betting Commission report in 2024, Gambling Survey for Great Britain, 2.7% of adults said they had a betting problem.


The Conservative federal government launched a review of gaming policy in 2023.


In 2025, the Gambling Commission offered individuals the right to more control over the direct marketing they get from betting companies and presented optimal stakes on online slot devices.


A government representative said it was "acutely mindful" of the impact hazardous betting can have and said it was "dedicated to enhancing protections to safeguard those at threat".


It presented the statutory gaming levy which it described as a "significant favorable step".


This puts a compulsory charge on certified gaming operators which will be utilized to money assistance and research study into betting addiction.


'Little fun'


Wade is now part of Gambling With Lives, a group formed by other bereaved parents that offers assistance to families, and projects to reform gambling laws.


Chair Charles Ritchie stated most of its members had actually lost someone "really regular, pleased, popular" who had actually "participated in gambling believing it was a little enjoyable".


"That's what we're all informed and then when you get into trouble you're effectively informed it's your fault and households hear that also," he stated.


He accused the market of promoting a narrative that it is "something incorrect with the person, a weakness or defect in their character".


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