Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)

It is something we looked at in the past. I remember this discussion because I took up the betting duty the last time, in 2019. I remember lots of discussion around it, although that being said, there was also much support in the Oireachtas for doing it. We are not sure that we are that far out of sync with everybody else. For example, the UK's charge or tax is applied with regard to profitability whereas ours is applied with regard to the value of the bet. Even though our rate may be lower, the base against which it is applied is far bigger. I remember when we made the change, there was a significant reaction to it on this point. We held to the change because I believed it was important to do, but the Deputy will see that the following year, a change was brought in for a tax credit for very small bookmakers, which was obviously an attempt to make sure that very small independent bookmakers were not put out of business or had their viability heavily compromised by a move like that. In summary, I am not sure we are that far out of sync because the base against which we apply it is wider than happens in other jurisdictions.