I am delighted to be able to announce that Problem Gambling Ireland has assembled a Board of Directors in preparation for establishing as a not-for-profit company. We will be submitting our paperwork to the Companies Registration Office shortly.
Our Board Members are:
All members are taking on their roles in a voluntary capacity and are not representing their employers. I would like to thank all of the Board Members for their commitment to reducing gambling-related harm in Ireland and for volunteering their time, energy and expertise. Barry Grant Founder, Problem Gambling Ireland
0 Comments
In 2013, the Heads of the Gambling Control Bill were published. The purpose of the proposed legislation is to replace the out-of-date and un-fit for purpose, Betting Act 1931 and the Gaming and Lotteries Act 1956. The proposed legislation seeks to regulate gambling in order to ensure:
All of these proposed measures would be welcomed by Problem Gambling Ireland, as the current vacuum in legislation only serves to create an environment where gambling-related harm can thrive. A dedicated Gambling Regulator with the power to press criminal charges against gambling licence-holders who breach the proposed laws would greatly reduce some of the sharp practices currently in evidence. Also, a Social Fund, into which gambling licence-holders would be compelled to contribute, would greatly increase the provision of dedicated gambling addiction services in the areas of treatment, prevention, education, research and evaluation. However, the response from one of Ireland's Gambling Industry heavy-weights, Paddy Power, may be indicative of the general attitude to the proposed legislation within the industry. In their submission to government in relation to the Heads of the Bill, they stated "We are concerned however by the proposal to apply the contribution to the Social Fund based on turnover (Head 80) given the intense international competition for online gambling and the narrow margins which generally apply for gambling products. We would encourage the Department to explore models from other jurisdictions that have similar systems in place which are working effectively, for example the UK where operators contribute voluntarily to the Responsible Gambling Trust (RGT) on a flat rate based on scale". It is worth noting that only 63% of gambling licence-holders in the UK actually contributed to the fund in 2014/2015 and that they raised the paltry sum of £6.5 million from an industry which posted profits of of £1.42 billion in 2013 from Fixed Odds Betting Terminals alone. Paddy Power's pre-tax profits for 2014 were €166.6 million. Surprisingly, Paddy Power, who are renowned for pushing the boundaries in their advertising campaigns, also took issue with the Department of Justice's proposals in relation to advertising and sponsorship. The gambling giant would prefer Codes of Practice and Codes of Conduct in gambling advertising (which already exist) rather than primary legislation. Paddy Power give the following example: "a failure to remove online promotional material within 12 hours could trigger a summary prosecution and sponsorship of an adult sports team which has one 17 year old player would infringe Head 74. We would respectfully query if such granular restrictions would be workable in practice.". I have no doubt that Paddy Power and other gambling industry members would have some difficulty with any restrictions, granular or otherwise, as it limits their ability to actively encourage problem gambling (which generates up to 75% of gambling industry profits in some jurisdictions) and to (inadvertently) promote gambling to children by advertising before the watershed and through sports sponsorship. Some facts on gambling in Ireland and globally:
On behalf of the estimated 240,000 people in Ireland, whose lives are negatively impacted by gambling-related harm, all of us at Problem Gambling Ireland ask that the new Government act quickly to enact the Gambling Control Bill. |
|