John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The previous lottery operator said that approximately 2% of the general figure related to unclaimed prizes. If that is used as a guideline, the amount works out at €15 million. The licence was sold for €405 million and over the next 20 years, the company is in a position to have discretion over the disbursement of €15 million annually, which amounts to €300 million over that period. I am not laying that at the regulator's door; I am just trying to establish where this began.