Gambling confusion in Waltham Forest

My colleagues in Waltham Forest were very confused to receive a Waltham Forest Labour newspaper recently, containing a big piece on their campaign against betting shops.
This is something the Greens are only too happy to support. These shops are a blight on our high streets and have a significant detrimental impact on the community by encouraging addiction to gambling, the consequent effect on health and well-being and the link with anti-social behaviour.

Myself and Waltham Forest Green activist, Mark Dawes
outside the crumbling stadium

We are however surprised to see that Labour shares our concerns about the gambling industry as they seem only too happy to support it in another guise. Labour, and in particular the Walthamstow MP, Stella Creasy, are vociferous in their support of the return of the Dog Track; a business that can only succeed if people gamble, and is intimately linked with the betting industry.
So are Labour for or against the gambling industry?

This came in the same week that we heard that homelessness in Waltham Forest has more than doubled in the last year, these are shocking figures, Waltham Forest clearly needs more affordable and social housing. While it is clear there are problems with the current plans for Walthamstow Stadium redevelopment, and local resident's views must be respected, there must be a way forward to develop the Stadium site so that it provides much needed community resources as well as a sensible amount of housing