Mark Wall (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I cannot believe one of the contributions tonight, because it is straight out of the gambling companies’ playbook as to why they should get free bet inducements. To suggest that should happen in this country when we have 130,000 people with a gambling addiction is wrong. Everybody is entitled to their opinion, but I have to say once again that this is a public health issue. I accept what the Minister of State says in his reply but I cannot accept the reasoning behind it because gambling companies are not the same as other companies. It has been perfectly outlined by my colleague, Senator Ruane. I deal with many people, who have also gone to the Minister of State, regarding gambling addiction. It is not just a person we are talking about here. We might have 130,000 people, which is the figure the ESRI has told us. However, up to six people in a family are affected as well. What are we going to do? The Minister of State has not explained how we are going to regulate the one-for-all voucher that goes across everybody. If I have the addiction, I am not being targeted, but it is there for me to take and that is unacceptable. It is totally unacceptable that I can turn around to a gambling company and take a free bet. When you talk to those with the addiction, that is the one thing they fear most. They really fear the free bet and the inducement because that triggers them once again.That is the issue that we, as legislators, should be addressing here tonight. We should be banning free bets and inducements once and for all to allow those people and, more importantly, the six people who are affected with them, space so they can come out of that addiction, or try to come out of that addiction, as hard as that is for so many of them. I know that the Minister of State has spoken to them and I know that they have told him that this is wrong, so for the life of me I cannot understand why the Government is standing over it.