Campaigners raise fresh concerns about Done family business after Guardian reveals interest in gambling addiction counselling
Fred Done, one of the billionaire Tory donors who owns bookmaker Betfred, also bankrolls a company that makes money advising people struggling with high debts, it has emerged.
MPs and campaigners raised fresh concerns about the Done family’s business empire, a day after the Guardian revealed that brothers Fred and Peter Done own a company that provides services including gambling addiction counselling to the public sector.
Companies House filings reveal that Fred Done also invested £150,000 in Angel Advance, a debt management company set up in 2013 and part-owned by other members of the Done family.
Angel Advance derives its revenues from advising indebted people, some of whom pay the company a fee to negotiate reduced repayments with creditors on their behalf.
The website offers “money saving tips”, such as switching to a cheaper supermarket, cutting down on takeaways or renting a spare room to a lodger. The tips do not include stopping gambling.
Angel Advance’s website also advises customers in difficulty to contact the Samaritans if they are struggling to deal with debt.
A list of issues they might be facing includes job-related stress, alcohol or drug abuse and suicidal thoughts. It does not include problem gambling, despite the fact that betting addiction has been linked with elevated rates of suicide.
Labour MP Carolyn Harris voiced dismay that the Done family could profit from gambling, counselling for gambling addiction and debt management all at once.
“They get paid when you gamble, they get paid when you seek help for it and they get paid when you try to clear your debts,” she said.
“It’s about how they can make the most of the vulnerable and squeeze blood out of a stone. It’s characteristic of the mentality of this industry.”
Problem gambling has frequently been linked to high debt, including by industry regulator the Gambling Commission, which announced a ban on betting with credit cards earlier this month.
Last year, the Guardian reported on the case of a problem gambler who used nine credit cards to spend hundreds of thousands of pounds with online casinos, who she claimed ignored her obvious signs of a spiralling addiction.
Debt charity Step Change said people with gambling problems who seek its advice usually have more debts than those who don’t, owing an average of £16,323 to eight creditors.
Citizens Advice said the number of people who have asked it for help because they owe money directly to a bookmaker has increased by 83% in two years.
Fresh revelations about the Done family’s interests come a day after the Guardian revealed that brothers Fred and Peter, who are worth a combined £1.25bn and have given £375,000 to the Conservative party, also own Health Assured.
The business provides gambling counselling to staff who work at NHS trusts and in parliament, prompting an allegation of “hypocrisy” from NHS mental health chief, Claire Murdoch.
Both Harris and SNP MP Ronnie Cowan called on parliament to review its contract with the company.
Cowan said: “For the UK parliament to contract them to provide support is beyond the pale.
“To compound matters, for Fred Done to invest in a debt management firm after helping to drive so many people into debt beggars belief.
“The Dones created the problem, then paid money to support the Tory party and then the Tory government uses taxpayers money to pay them to fix the problem they created. And we wonder why people don’t trust politicians!”
A spokesperson for Health Assured said people with gambling addiction problems accounted for less than 0.1% of telephone calls it received from its clients’ staff.
“The management and directors of Health Assured and Betfred are also entirely separate and independent of each other,” they added.
“What is more, Health Assured has always been open, and provided full disclosure on ownership during tender processes and new contracts won have been secured on merit.”
A spokesperson for the House of Commons and the House of Lords said: “UK parliament is bound by strict procurement regulations. Our focus is to ensure high quality services and value for money for the tax payer. All contracts are reviewed regularly.”
Marc Etches, chief executive of the leading betting addiction charity GambleAware, added his voice to concern about the Done family’s overlapping business interests.
“It is important that anyone who is experiencing gambling harms has access to appropriate support,” he said.
“However, this case understandably raises concerns about a potential conflict of interest.”
Joanne Whittaker, a director of Angel Advance, said: “The business is authorised and regulated by the FCA, who are aware of the make up of its ownership, and it is run completely independent of Betfred, with an entirely distinct and separate management structure.
“Any clients receiving debt advice arising from gambling-related issues would receive appropriate signposting and help in accordance with our approved protocols and procedures.”
