Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for that answer. He has set out that under the new licensing arrangement, 65% of gross gaming revenue will be directed towards good causes. What I am trying to establish is a certainty that the level of funding for good causes will not be damaged by the new regime, which, as the Minister knows, I opposed in the course of our debates. We will not open that up again. The Minister told us that last year the figure for good causes was €225 million. Can he tell us whether his Department has run figures based on the revenues from last year and whether he is satisfied that that figure will be matched, if not surpassed - in other words, that that is the correct formula with which to move forward?

In respect of the up-front payment, I know the Minister cannot speculate as to what that figure might be and therefore I will not ask him for a bald figure, but I ask him for an assurance that a large up-front payment will not be used by a bidder as an incentive for the system to perhaps be a little slack in terms of the other terms and conditions of the licence. I invite the Minister to comment on that.

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