Drink and Drugs News DDN September 2018_V2 | Page 8

Letters and Comment DDN welcomes your letters Please email the editor, [email protected], or post them to DDN, cJ wellings ltd, romney House, school road, Ashford, Kent tN27 0lt. letters may be edited for space or clarity. Problem shared ‘We provide support to around 30,000 people per year via the HelpLine and NetLine, and around 8,000 people each year also receive support through our network of treatment services.’ MEDIA SAVVY MILLENNIALS AND THEIR SUCCESSORS, Generation Z, wear their ethical credentials on their sleeves. They like their coffee Fairtrade, their fur fake and their chicken free range. They pride themselves on being responsible consumers – yet many are happy to help sustain the most brutal trade on Earth. These cocaine- snorting hypocrites rail against 8 | drinkanddrugsnews | September 2018 ‘elites’ and the 1 per cent, yet their habit lines the pockets of cartel kingpins who display their gold-plated guns and pet tigers on Instagram, #narcostyle. They want to save the Earth and balk at the use of plastic straws, yet for every gram of coke they put up their nose, four square metres of rainforest are destroyed. They want to tear down statues of long-dead men who were involved in the slave trade, yet their cheeky line at the weekend fuels a trade closely linked to modern slavery. Clare Foges, Times, 1 August IT’S CLEAR THAT WESTERN COCAINE USERS HAVE TO ACCEPT THEY ARE CONTRIBUTING TO VIOLENT CRIME that has left hundreds of thousands dead in Latin America over the past decades, and is spilling on to British I am writing regarding your recent feature on problem gambling (DDN, July/August, page 12). The article states that treatment provision for those affected by problem gambling is still sparse, which is a point we at GamCare would like to address. GamCare operates the National Gambling HelpLine, providing information, advice and support for anyone affected by problem gambling (including family and friends). Advisers are available seven days a week from 8am to midnight on Freephone 0808 8020 133, or via web chat at www.gamcare.org.uk. We also offer a range of free treatment (face to face, online and over the phone) across England, Scotland and Wales, as well as a moderated forum so that people can speak to others experiencing similar issues and seek support. Our support services are funded by GambleAware. We provide support to around 30,000 people per year via the HelpLine and NetLine, and around 8,000 people each year also receive support through our network of treatment services. We are also able to refer into the CNWL National Problem Gambling Clinic and the Gordon Moody Association (who both also receive funding via GambleAware) when clients have more complex needs. Catherine Sweet, head of marketing and communications, GamCare referral routes It was great to see the July/August issue of DDN devote two pages to a profile of the Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust’s clinic for problem gamblers. Staff working in substance misuse services or other addiction services can refer service users to the CNWL clinic and the other services which make up the national problem gambling treatment service by calling the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133. Self-referrals are also welcome. Treatment across Great Britain is funded by BeGambleAware.org and carries no cost for referring organisations or service users. People who do not need treatment for problem gambling can also use the same contact details to obtain advice on safer gambling. John McCracken, director of commissioning, GambleAware, London The news, and the skews, in the national media streets. Perhaps the carnage in Latin America is a comfortable distance away from those snorting coke at weekend parties across the UK. If your money funds the market, you are complicit in the consequences. Iman Amrani, Guardian, 1 August with politicians who refuse to face reality. Prohibition does not