Response to announcement of OHID as the new Commissioner of the Statutory Levy
Responding to the Department for Culture, Media & Sport announcement that the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) was made the Prevention Commissioner of the Statutory Levy, the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners’ Joint Leads on Addictions & substance misuse, PCC Joy Allen and PCC David Sidwick, said:
“Experiencing gambling harms is a public health issue, so it is right we now have a statutory organisation - responsible for improving national health policies, reducing health inequalities and keeping people in better health for longer – as the new prevention commissioner for the Government’s Statutory Levy.
We take this opportunity to reiterate our view that PCCs are key to preventing gambling harms from leading to crime and people becoming victims of domestic abuse, fraud, child neglect, as well as harms in the form of suicide - something we have called for over the last few years. Gambling also has a devastating ripple effect on families whom seldom know about the gambling until it is too late.
We are committed to collaborating with OHID, NHS and UKRI to understand the prevalence of harm, who is impacted by this issue, identifying ways of improving referrals to treatment and support for those who come into contact with the Criminal Justice System, and, most importantly, preventing people from being drawn into gambling addiction in the first place.
As Chairs of the National Gambling taskforce, we will continue to work with partners to progress the recommendations in the Commission on Crime and Gambling-related Harms, especially those focused on prevention, however funding needs to go to the right places to divert those with gambling disorder into treatment and creating a space for rehabilitation at the earliest opportunity.
As PCCs locally, we commission and support numerous prevention interventions to reduce harm and convene key partners working to prevent addictions leading to crimes being committed through Combating Drugs Partnerships and Local Criminal Justice Boards, so we are in a strong position to support the work of all three commissioners to make the new levy system as effective and efficient as it needs to be, in and out of the Criminal Justice System.
Prevention is key, so we will support OHID as the new prevention commissioner, but we need to be part of the decision-making in order to make a difference to our local communities.”
ENDS