Secret gambler went to buy milk and lost £5000

A secret gambler has described how he went out to buy a pint of milk and gambled away £5,000 at a betting shop.

"John", who has kept his addiction secret from his friends and family, visited ten betting shops a day and is now in six figures worth of debt.

He told BBC Radio 5 live's Breakfast: "I've probably gambled every penny I've earned in the last six years."

It comes as the government plans to give local authorities more powers to decide whether to allow new high street betting shops to open.