Part of 2. 2. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children – in the Senedd at 2:18 pm on 28 June 2017.
I know, Cabinet Secretary, first-hand, from my constituency casework, that the issues faced by veterans range from housing, homelessness to healthcare. Research carried out by Swansea University and the Forces in Mind Trust has suggested that veterans may be more at risk than non-veterans of developing gambling problems and this vulnerability may be related to experience of prior traumatic events. Gambling is a complex addiction and has many contributing factors and perhaps it should be treated in the same way as alcohol and drug addiction. As the Cabinet Secretary with responsibility for policy in relation to the armed forces and veterans in Wales, will you work with your colleague the Minister for Social Services and Public Health to look at the health and wider impact of problem gambling among veterans, so that their particular needs can be addressed and they’re able to access any appropriate help that may be available?