Mr. Frank Flannery:

Deputy Niall Collins will have gathered from earlier comments we made that we believe the Irish system in the lottery field is geared towards the creation of a monopoly. This is being ruthlessly reinforced in the legislation before us. Why this is being done raises another question. What happens in many other European countries is quite different, which has been positive for us. The Deputy may be aware of the ONLAE, a famous Spanish lottery. He may also have heard of its lottery, the ONCE, which is specifically for blind and visually impaired persons. The ONLAE lottery has a turnover of €8 billion to €9 billion per annum, while the ONCE has a turnover of between €2.5 billion and €3 billion and supports thousands of people.

This has always been agreed to by the Spanish regulatory system. They both operate under legislation which allows them to operate and compete effectively in the marketplace. There is another very substantial lottery in Catalonia. Spain has one of the most successful national lotteries in the world and can also provide for the not-for-profit charitable sector. The position in Holland is somewhat similar. I will not describe what happens in too many countries.