Amy Winehouse’s father, Mitch, has met with MP Keith Vaz to discuss plans for a drug rehabilitation centre in his daughter’s name.
Mitch Winehouse was joined by his late daughter's managers, Raye Cosbert and Trenton Harrison-Lee, and Sarah Graham, an addiction expert, to highlight a gap in residential treatment services for young people who cannot afford private treatment.
His meeting with Vaz, who is chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee, comes shortly after he announced plans to set up an Amy Winehouse Foundation. At his daughter’s funeral he described it as: “something to help the things she loved - children, horses, but also to help those struggling with substance abuse."
A family spokesman told the Guardian that Mitch Winehouse felt strongly about the fact that addicts can face a wait of up to two years for NHS treatment. "He realised that if the family didn't have money for Priory-style treatment it would be difficult to get help," the spokesman said.
Amy Winehouse’s death on July 23 is thought to be connected to drink or drugs, although official toxicology test results have not yet been announced.
Addiction expert Graham told Sky News that she hoped the singer’s death will “show people that addiction is something that can kill people when they are very young and that we should not wait until it is too late".
Speaking of the current problems with the rehabilitation system, she said: “Rehabilitation is more expensive than treatment in the community but in reality most desperate young people cannot access it."
This is not the first time Mitch Winehouse has met with MPs. In October 2009 he gave evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee, chaired by Vaz, during its inquiry into drugs.