James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Addressing Deputy Howlin's question first, that very much is the intention. As time has moved on, language has changed slightly in the drafting, but that very much carries the same intention as the previous legislation, which is that they remain equal.

We are satisfied that the definition of "relevant content" is that they cannot advertise the activity or the licensee, and that would include any promotion of the licensee itself. This would include any promotion of the licensee and would include any material associated with the promotion of the of the licensee. We are satisfied that would include the circumstances outlined by Deputy Doherty.

On the appointments to the board, our view is that the Bill provides that the members of the board must have experience in gambling and of the pathology of gambling. It is felt that it is broad enough to cover lived experience. In addition, in organising the public appointment system campaign to select members of the authority, the Minister will have input into the selection criteria for members of the authority. I expect that lived experience would be very much part of that.

Deputy McGrath is gone but I can assure him that we have met with all stakeholders on a regular basis. An extraordinary amount of work has been done to ensure that horseracing and greyhound tracks can continue as heretofore. We have to protect those industries while at the same time ensuring all of the relevant regulations will apply around child protection, anti-money laundering, etc. The only thing we would not accede to was allowing racing channels to show, not advertising about horseracing, but hard gambling ads around poker machines and casinos, etc. An exception was sought to allow those TV stations do that but that would have driven a cart and four through what we are doing here with regard to the advertising ban that was recommended by the all-party Oireachtas committee.

The question of charitable and philanthropic organisations was discussed by the all-party Oireachtas committee at the time. It was pointed out that gambling is involved. No exception was recommended by the Oireachtas committee, which had all every party on it. We wanted to make the amendments but the real challenge and difficulty was not in making exceptions for charities and sporting organisations, but in ensuring they could not be taken advantage of. We are all familiar with the alcohol 0.0 situation. It was quite a challenge but we got there. I thank my officials who have ensured that the drafting is so tight that a gambling organisation will not be able to set itself up as a charity. Equally, some nefarious actor will not be able to come along and set itself up as a charity for nothing other than purposes that would enable it to advertise gambling. We are satisfied that we have been able to put protections in place to protect the charity and sporting sector. The points were well made by Sinn Féin and by others on the charity and sporting sectors. It was never the case that we did not want to make those exceptions, but the question of how to make them was quite challenging for drafting purposes.

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