The BBC reports
Four out of every 10 police forces in England and Wales are failing to ask arrested suspects whether they have a gambling addiction, data reveals.
Screening for drug or alcohol addiction and mental-health problems is standard practice among police forces.
But 41% of forces fail to include gambling, a Freedom of Information request shared exclusively with BBC Radio 4’s File on 4 programme reveals.
The National Police Chiefs Council said it was working to improve screening.
This formal screening process, by officers at the police station, can also form part of the arrested person’s mitigation if they go to court.
Failing to include gambling addiction is leading to a lack of treatment and, in turn, further offending, critics say.
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