David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Senator will be even more delighted in a minute. I hope we can have a meeting of minds on this. There are deep concerns about the best way to address the issue of harmful gambling, which has an impact on the lives of people who are addicted, on their families and on wider society. There is no doubt that we all share these concerns. I agree that we must seek to better understand the issues involved and to obtain credible evidence of the nature and extent of the problems arising from gambling, which is a large and complex activity. As we said earlier, increasingly it is taking place in an online environment.

On 27 February last, this House debated a motion relating to the report of the interdepartmental working group on the future licensing and regulation of gambling, which was impending at that time. During that debate, I mentioned that the drug prevalence survey for 2014-15 had been published by the Minister of State with responsibility for health promotion and the national drug strategy, Deputy Catherine Byrne, and myself. The survey, which represented the first set of data on the extent of gambling in Ireland, was based on fieldwork carried out between August 2014 and August 2015. This general population survey of more than 7,000 people was a collaborative project between the national advisory committee on drugs and alcohol and the public administration and health research branch of the Department of Health in Northern Ireland. Ipsos MRBI in Ireland carried out the fieldwork on this occasion. My Department contributed to the costs of the survey, which provided a baseline of data to assist in policy formulation and future planning and action on gambling. The survey found that the prevalence of problem gambling in the general population was 0.8% and that problem gambling was most common among young males, occurring in 1.9% of males between the ages of 18 and 24 and 2.9% of males between the ages of 25 and 34.

The Senator is probably ahead of himself in some of this. This is usual and not surprising. The good news is that the Health Research Board, HRB, is undertaking a 2018-19 prevalence study to assist in policy formulation, planning and action in this area. The results of this survey, which are expected in 2020, will contain a specific section on gambling prevalence with an extended range of questions. The Departments of Justice and Equality and Health are contributing to the cost of the study. The Senator is ahead of the game in proposing this. I am sure he will be pleased to know it is happening already.

Senators should note that neither I nor the Department of Justice and Equality has direct responsibility for the wide range of interests concerned with gambling, problem gambling or addiction generally. Such responsibility rests with my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Catherine Byrne, and the Department of Health. Problem gambling and, in particular, gambling addiction are health matters. Somebody who needs treatment for an addiction must go down that route. We can do a certain amount through regulation - we can help and assist - but if someone has a serious addiction, it is a health issue.

While I welcome the concern and intention behind the amendment, I believe the work that is being done by the HRB will address the concerns that exist. A great deal of money is being spent on the survey, which is already happening. I cannot see any circumstances in which the amendment could be achieved with the resources and expertise currently available to my Department. It is again a health issue. As I have said, a survey is happening. It is not sensible to engage a professional market research company at considerable expense to conduct further research, particularly when the Departments of Health and Justice and Equality are contributing in a significant way to the 2018-19 prevalence study, which is under way. The research the Senator is looking for is happening. In light of this, I ask him to consider withdrawing his amendment and to await the results of the prevalence study, which will come out around the time envisaged by the Senator. His support for this initiative would be welcome.