Bereaved Mum Backs Require Gambling Regulation

4 February 2026
ShareSave


Helen CattPolitical Editor, BBC South East


A mother whose child took his own life after becoming addicted to gaming is backing calls from MPs to treat the practice as a public health threat.


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


She stated it had taken her lots of years to understand that addiction meant "the onus wasn't all on him" to stop gambling.


The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), the primary market body, said the "overwhelming majority" of individuals who gamble do so "safely and properly".


'All gone'


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


He likewise loved football, typically banking on matches.


She said her son significantly started to ask her for cash in 2013.


"I had not confessed to myself the amount of money he was asking me for at different times," she stated.


She remembered one occasion when it was his turn to pay for a Friday morning breakfast he routinely had with buddies.


Wade stated: "He rang me up and asked me if I might move some money to pay for the breakfast.


"He been paid that morning and he had no money in his account. It was all gone."


She said she now believes he had actually 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 assistance however, in 2014, he took his own life.


After her kid's death, Wade discovered a variety of emails from betting firms using rewards such as funded trips to see his favourite football group.


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


Public health issue


Wade later on met Sittingbourne and Sheppey MP Kevin McKenna, who has actually since made campaigning on gambling harms a concern.


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


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


"If it was anything else we 'd be looking at it as a public health concern," he added.


It would shift the focus from private obligation to acknowledging it as a risk to the wider population as a whole.


Treating it as a public health concern could include actions like greater regulation of betting advertising and getting rid of the most addicting items.


The Betting and Gaming Council stated the "overwhelming majority" of the 22.5 million individuals who bet in Britain did so "safely" and "responsibly".


According to a Gaming Commission report in 2024, Gambling Survey for Great Britain, 2.7% of grownups said they had a gaming problem.


The Conservative federal government launched an evaluation of gambling policy in 2023.


In 2025, the Gambling Commission gave individuals the right to more control over the direct marketing they get from gambling companies and presented optimal stakes on online slots.


A federal government representative stated it was "acutely mindful" of the impact hazardous gaming can have and said it was "committed to reinforcing defenses to secure those at risk".


It presented the statutory betting levy which it described as a "significant positive step".


This puts an obligatory charge on certified gaming operators which will be used to fund assistance and research into gambling addiction.


'Bit of fun'


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


Chair Charles Ritchie said the majority of its members had actually lost somebody "very normal, happy, popular" who had "entered into betting believing it was a bit of fun".


"That's what we're all told and then when you enter difficulty you're efficiently told it's your fault and families hear that too," he said.


He implicated the industry of promoting a story that it is "something incorrect with the individual, a weak point or defect in their character".


Follow BBC Kent on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.