The provincial government is not planning to call for record-keeping changes in the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, despite gaps in gambling-related suicide data.
“We support the independence of the OCME and support any decisions they make to increase public awareness of the risks associated with problem gambling,” Glen Simard, minister responsible for the Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries Corp., said in a statement.
A Free Press investigation revealed earlier this month that the OCME has recorded only 35 gambling-related suicides since 1999, a figure researchers say is likely inaccurate.
MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS FILES
Carrie Hiebert, the Tory MLA for Morden-Winkler, says Manitoba doesn’t do enough in terms of flagging and treating people with gambling problems.
Though experts suggest at least five to 10 per cent of suicides are related to gambling, Manitoba recorded none in 13 calendar years between 2000 and 2023. No other province that shared data had as many gaps. (P.E.I. and Newfoundland and Labrador did not participate.)
The Free Press sought comment from Premier Wab Kinew and three government ministries— justice (the OCME, though independent, falls under that ministry), mental health and lotteries. Only Simard was made available.
“We take the issue of gambling-related suicides very seriously,” Simard said in the statement, which outlined several examples of government spending on anti-addiction programs. They include $3.8 million in Shared Health funding for gambling-addictions treatment and additional expenditures, such as community counselling services, staffed gambling information kiosks at casinos and “gambling withdrawal beds in Thompson and Brandon.”
Simard did not answer the individual questions submitted, including what actions the government is prepared to take to address the lack of gambling-related suicide data collected in Manitoba.
Carrie Hiebert, the Progressive Conservative mental-health and housing, addictions and homelessness critic, said it is important to know how different provinces are addressing gambling-related suicides.
“In Manitoba specifically, we don’t do enough for mental health and addictions when it comes to flagging and treating people who need help,” said the MLA for Morden-Winkler.
Kinew has publicly discussed expanding Manitoba’s casino industry, but said the government would only do so if it could mitigate social impacts. Simard did not directly respond to whether the effect of gambling on suicides in the province would be reviewed before any further expansion.
Hiebert said she was concerned by the lack of review.
“We have no idea how widespread the problem might be,” she said. “If we’re looking at opening up another casino, or more gambling opportunities for people, we need to make sure that we’re taking care of the issues that it will cause first.”
Chief medical examiner Dr. John Younes previously told the Free Press that the province is open to changing how it tracks suicide data if there are new national best practices or standards to follow.
In their absence, other provinces are tackling the issue themselves. In January 2024, New Brunswick’s Coroner Services implemented new data collection methods for suicide-risk factors. It now actively collects information related to gambling. Last year, The Chief Medical Examiner’s office in Newfoundland and Labrador said it is exploring how to better track suicide risk factors, including gambling.
Simard didn’t specify whether the government thinks the OCME should follow their lead, but Hiebert said the medical examiner’s office shouldn’t wait to follow other provinces.
“We shouldn’t be waiting,” she said. “Every day we wait is another life lost.”