Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I, too, welcome the Minister of State. It is worth pointing out that for a long time, before 2011, very little happened in trying to regulate gambling. We would not be where we are but for the Minister of State and the forensic knowledge he built up when Chairman of the then Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality which did a significant body of work in this area. In his period in office he has advanced significantly with the report he brought to the Cabinet at the end of March. The Government is committed to having a gambling regulator because, as Senator Craughwell stated, online gambling is a very serious problem which is developing at breakneck speed. We must have an appropriate professional and internationally in tune response to it. Setting up a gambling regulator will not be an easy piece of work. We are talking about recruiting up to 100 people to engage in highly specialised work to ensure they will not alone keep up with developments in modern technology but also move ahead of it to try to deal with the consequences of gambling. That piece of work is ongoing.

My understanding of the purpose of the legislation is that it seeks to tidy up previous legislative measures. It has not really been designed to deal with online gambling. That is a much more serious problem that requires a significant body of work to be done to deal with it. Until now, any young fellow at a race meeting could legally place a bet with the tote. This legislation will ensure young people will have to be 18 years of age before they can do so. It is fair to point out that the tote has voluntarily adopted an age limit of 18 years in the placing of bets.

I am concerned about the running of raffles at sports events that we all attend. I attended one at the weekend, as I am sure other Members did, at which we paid €5 or €10 for a cloakroom ticket. I do not know whether it is appropriate, as a colleague of mine pointed out, to legislate for the buying of a cloakroom ticket. That might be going a step too far, but perhaps it might be better to go a step too far to prevent unintended consequences.

I am open to correction, but I believe every Member of the House wants to see the activity of gambling dealt with and properly regulated to ensure people will gamble for enjoyment, not because of an addiction or any other need. I hope the House will not divide on the legislation on Second Stage and that Members will table amendments to improve it. Knowing the Minister of State as I do, he will engage with Members from all sides to ensure sensible amendments that will enhance the legislation are tabled in order that we can achieve our common goal, which is to protect citizens, while ensuring we are fair to those who make a livelihood out of gaming and gambling and that the local GAA or soccer club lottery can operate to continue to provide vital financial support a club needs to ensure children and young people can play an active role in sport and society.

This legislation is very important, but I acknowledge that it is only a start in addressing the issue of gambling. However, we have to start somewhere. The Minister of State has made a significant start with the interdepartmental report that was brought to the Cabinet. This legislation marks the start of a process to bring Ireland into line with best international practice in this area.