Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

This issue was previously debated in the Seanad in May of last year when I had the opportunity to discuss the matter and to hear the views of Senators, and have had heard the views of many individual Senators since. As member are aware, the National Lottery Bill was published before Christmas and has passed Second Stage. The Committee Stage of the Bill is currently before the Dail. I look forward to debating the detail of the Bill with Senators when it comes before the Seanad.

The National Lottery Bill 2012 is intended to replace the National Lottery Act which was enacted in 1986. Under the Act, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform may issue a licence to a person or company to hold the national lottery on behalf of the Minister on behalf of the State. I am very conscious that I accountable to the Houses of the Oireachtas and to my own electorate. The new legislation will also provide for the operation of the national lottery under a licence on behalf of the Minister. Since its establishment, the national lottery has been operated under a number of consecutive licences by An Post National Lottery Company.

I would like once again to pay tribute to the very substantial achievements of the national lottery since its inception in the mid 1980s. During the past quarter of a century, the National Lottery Company has come to be regarded as a very innovative and successful national lottery. Since 1987, it has raised about ¤4 billion for good causes right across the country, an astonishing sum.

The decision to establish a national lottery was taken at a time of economic difficulty for Ireland in the 1980s. At present, we are again seeking to address very serious financial and economic challenges. Notwithstanding the successes of Government in renegotiating the repayment schedule for the promissory note last week, we still face very significant economic challenges. There are very real demands on us as a society, not least from the hospital sector. In view of these challenges, the Government decided in November 2011 to explore the opportunities presented by the expiry of the current lottery licence. Following an examination of the various options by my Department, the Government, elected by the people, agreed in April 2012 that the following arrangements will apply to the next national lottery licence:-

- There will be a competitive process for the award of the licence which will be for a period of 20 years;

- The terms of the next licence will include an upfront payment to the State - the intention is that part of this upfront payment will be used to help fund the building of the new National Children's Hospital - I will go into some detail on how that is to be ringfenced if Senators wish;

- The next licence will involve the ongoing provision of a significant level of funding for good causes . I have indicated a quantum analogous to what has been generated to date. There will be no diminution of that.

As I have already mentioned, the National Lottery Bill was published in December 2012.