Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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The Minister uses the argument of economic circumstances to justify many things. He then goes on to make the argument that this is good legislation because it will inject dynamism into the lottery for the times we are in. The implication is that the current lottery model is getting a bit tired and could do with an injection of new life. The amount of funds generated by the current model and the fact that it has remained broadly steady despite the catastrophic collapse in the economic and financial circumstances of this country is an indication of the resilience and strength of that model and a reason not to change it. The excuses for doing what is proposed are spurious because what the Minister suggests he wants to achieve can be achieved by the current model. Talk of raiding existing revenue streams to finance the children's hospital is loaded, alarmist language which seeks to deflect from the fundamental criticism we are making, namely, the national lottery is supported by the public in this country because it funds good causes.

I am not a fan of gambling. I do not believe it is particularly good to encourage it. However, the national lottery is at least an outlet for gambling that in the greater scheme of the gambling landscape is a more benign form, the revenues from which go towards good causes which, largely, benefit the socioeconomic category that tend to be the ones spending money on lottery tickets. I do not accept the Minister's justification for this. The Minister suggests we can achieve both aims by privatising the lottery. I believe we can do both by retaining it as it is. Regardless of how the Minister spins or tries to justify this, it is privatisation. Currently, An Post, a State-owned company, is the parent company for the lottery. That is going to change.

It is highly likely that, as a consequence, we will have Camelot or some similar outfit, which has absolutely no loyalty or allegiance to or interest in the concerns or needs of the citizens of this country, taking it over. We will move from the payment of a set fee to the introduction of a profit line, which is what it says in the Department's statements. Something gives there because, as Deputy McDonald said, these guys will not come in for the good of their health; they want something. What they want is the profit line. Something will give in a context where that profit line is introduced. I do not see any justification for this and I utterly oppose it. The Minister should not repeal the Act put in place to underpin the lottery as currently constituted, which is what this section is about. It is not necessary and it will not help us in any way justify what the Minister is doing.