Written answers

Thursday, 31 January 2019

Department of Justice and Equality

Gambling Legislation

Photo of Anne RabbitteAnne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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100. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the status of his plans to introduce gambling regulation measures; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4859/19]

Photo of David StantonDavid Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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I am happy to update the Deputy on the work I am undertaking to update our laws on gambling.

The Deputy will be aware that an Inter-Departmental Working Group on Gambling was established as a result of the Government Decision of 10 January 2018 to review the 2013 General Scheme of the Gambling Control Bill and all relevant developments since. I chaired this group, comprising all stakeholder Departments and the Office of the Attorney General.

The Group met on six occasions since February 2018 and reviewed all of the provisions of the 2013 Scheme. The final meeting of the Group took place on 24 January 2019.

The Group's Report will now be finalised and I hope to bring it to Government for consideration as soon as possible.

I would also like to take the opportunity to update the Deputy on the Gaming and Lotteries (Amendment) Bill, which I hope to publish early in the current Oireachtas session. This will be an interim reform measure, pending the bringing forward of comprehensive gambling control legislation.

The amendments proposed under the Bill address certain deficiencies with regard to the conduct of activities regulated under the Gaming and Lotteries Act 1956, and provide for the modernisation of that Act by way of, among other matters, arrangements for the better promotion of lotteries, updating certain stake and prize limits and standardising the minimum gambling age at 18.

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