Tory MP opens up on losing her mother to alcoholism and the impact on her childhood

Now, in an interview with GB News, the MP explained how she is trying to use her own experiences to support others impacted by alcoholism.

Speaking to Gloria De Piero, Britcliffe told how, aged four, she had to be rescued by the Fire Service during one of her mother’s worst alcohol binges.

She also tells how she watched her mother get arrested for being drunk and disorderly aboard a flight meaning she was left stranded aged just five at Manchester Airport.

Britcliffe, who was just 24 when she was MP for Hyndburn and Haslingden in 2019, also recalls moments where her mother told her she feared she was going to die - an outcome which did eventually tragically occur.

Now age 28, the Conservative said: “My mum was an alcoholic. She was the best woman that you could ever meet, and she loved me so much. Everybody knew it, and anybody who knew my mum knew how attached she was to me.

“She wouldn't leave my side and that was one of the problems, because it was mum and daughter. My brothers have a different mum to me and she struggled throughout my life. But she was very good at hiding it from my dad.”

Explaining how she used to hide it, Britcliffe continued: “What she used to do was she used to take me up to bed and she'd then go and drink a bottle of vodka whilst I was tucked upstairs in bed. So my family didn't realise what was really happening with her.

"And I think it was when my grandma was still alive, mum had fallen down the stairs or something like that and that's when my grandma realised she was potentially an alcoholic.”

Detailing how it affected her growing up she said: “It got to the position where I found myself in some really difficult situations with my mum, where I think my dad went abroad, and my mum was looking after me.

“Again nobody realised that she was an alcoholic and she ended up locking me in the house and she went. She had gone and had a drink and the fire brigade had to come and get me out.

“I was probably four or five years old at that point. So that's when people realised that there was a problem, a huge problem. I absolutely despised my dad throughout this. And it wasn't his fault, but it felt like he was taking me away from my mum because social services got involved and said if ‘Gabby doesn't move out of the family home, we're taking Sara into care’.

“Honestly, I remember everything about my mum and she just loved me. And anybody that you met would tell you she adored me. And that was one of the problems because everybody would always say to me, as a young girl at the age of four, five, six years old, that the only way that she would stop drinking is because of me. And that pressure that existed as a little girl, because y0u felt that the only way that your mum would survive was for you to do something about it, that you could fix it.”

“But it wasn't the case and that's why I think a lot of support is needed for families of alcoholics.

Describing another harrowing moment she said: “I remember one time it was all over the papers because my dad at the time was the leader of the council and mum left me in Manchester Airport.

“She'd had a drink in the airport and we were going to Germany to see my family. And she got on the plane and was arrested on the plane for being drunk and disorderly. I remember being sat in the police station in Manchester Airport waiting for my dad to pick me up.

Setting out the changes she’d like to see the Hyndburn MP said: “It is support around a person coming out of rehab. Because what happened was my mum is, that she'd be cared for 24/7.

“But then she’d go home and once I'd left the house, who's there? Who's there to give her the support that she needs and the advice? So what she did, instantly, was to go and get a bottle of vodka. So the support for people when they come out of rehab so that they're not just sitting on their own in the home, is key.

“But also it's more awareness that actually for example, people telling me that I could fix my mum being an alcoholic, and people understanding that being an alcoholic is an illness. It's still so stigmatised. It's an illness and without the right support, you end up in a catastrophic situation like my mum did.
Commenting on how she is now she said: “I still struggle. It's nearly 20 years now since I lost my mum. And the worst bit for me is I'm starting to forget her voice. But actually, mentally, I'm in a really good position. But that's because I sought support. I also think being thrown in at the deep end with this job kind of makes you too busy to even think about anything.

“So that again delayed the process of me suffering because I was so focused on the job. I absolutely love the job because you can make a difference. But then after the pandemic, things started to ease off. I had more time to think. I wasn't getting that work life balance because you don't. It is so difficult to find a work-life balance in this job. So I actually sought support through Parliament - and it's massively helped.”