Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

This issue was brought up with the Minister of State during a previous debate the other night in this Chamber. I was quite surprised how strident he was in sticking to his guns. I echo what my colleagues have said today. I made a point to the Minister of State the other day regarding the kinds of voluntary organisations that are involved in raising money. I specifically pointed out to him that Waterford GAA last year raffled a house in Dungarvan and from the proceeds of that raffle, which was nearly €600,000, all of that money has been returned into youth development and player development in the GAA. Prior to that, I think the most they ever raised in any year was approximately €150,000. I made the point to the Minister of State in that exchange that the people who buy a ticket for €100 are not problem gamblers. They know exactly what they are doing. They are making a contribution to whatever the fund is because of altruistic emotion on their part. They are supporting the GAA or their hospice. They are supporting whatever local group or youth organisation it is.

I ask the Minister of State at that time to look at this amendment seriously. I think he is hearing now across the House the very significant resistance to this aspect of the Bill, not because people are not worried about problem gambling and not because people are not aware of the issues that are in households, but because the Government has overstepped the mark, as I said to the Minister of State the other day, in terms of what it is proposing here. This is a ludicrous amendment that needs to be taken away from the legislation. I ask the Minister of State to do that.

I reiterate that in terms of the banking card block, which I brought up the other day and which has been brought up in this House, the banks said over two and a half years ago that they were willing to bring in such a block for those recovering from problem gambling. That has not been addressed in this legislation. On the one hand, the Minister of State is bringing in measures that nobody requested, and that people are telling him are not going to work and on the other hand, he will not bring in what is there, what should be done and what has already been legislated for in the UK. Again, I would echo what my colleagues have said. The Minister of State should bring back better legislation in terms of this issue.

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