Pre-Budget Submission on Betting Duty - In collaboration with the Rutland Centre

Yesterday, we sent our joint pre-budget submission to Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe.  Together with the Rutland Centre, we have been campaigning to have a portion of the Betting Duty allocated to the treatment and prevention of problem gambling in Ireland.  

If you are interested in supporting this campaign, please contact your local TD.  A list of email addresses for all TDs is available here.  

Below is the opening section of our submission.  The full document can be downloaded here (PDF).

Dear Minister Donohoe,
 
We are writing to ask that you allocate urgently-needed funding to problem gambling services in Budget 2018. 
 
Currently there is no dedicated funding for problem gambling treatment, prevention or research in Ireland.  This is despite the fact that we have the highest per capita gambling losses in Europe (the third highest globally).  The HSE does not have problem gambling or gambling addiction as part of their Service Plan for 2017 and we have been advised by them that it is unlikely that they will allocate funding to this area, as they are aware that a dedicated Social Fund is due to be created upon the enactment of the Gambling Control Bill.  Unfortunately, it may take several years before the Social Fund is active and this is time that the thousands of families affected by gambling-related harm do not have.
 
We propose that Betting Duty be increased by a minimum of 0.1%, with those additional funds (roughly €5 million) allocated to problem gambling services.  We propose that this be an interim measure until the Social Fund is active.  At an Oireachtas Agriculture Committee meeting earlier this year, Mr Brian Kavanagh, CEO of Horse Racing Ireland (the main recipient of Betting Duty funding), stated that funding addiction services from Betting Duty would be “eminently sensible” (i).  Our proposal has also gained public support from Paddy Power co-founder, Stewart Kenny (ii). 
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Currently Ireland has the lowest Betting Duty in Europe.  The equivalent turnover rate in the UK is 1.5%.  We feel that this leaves plenty of scope for an increase, without adversely affecting either the Horse Racing and Greyhound industries or the gambling industry. 
 
According to an estimate from the Institute of Public Health in Ireland, there are somewhere between 28,000 and 40,000 problem gamblers in Ireland.  International research has shown that, for every problem gambler, an additional 8-10 people’s lives are negatively affected.  Even at the lower end of the scale, this would mean that there are in the region of 250,000 people in Ireland who are experiencing gambling-related harm.
 
In July of this year, Taoiseach Varadkar stated that gambling can give rise to “people becoming addicted, impoverished and unwell as a consequence” (iii).  We strongly believe that it is time for the State to recognise problem gambling as a serious public health issue in Ireland.    
 
We urge you to use any increase in Betting Duty in Budget 2018 as an opportunity to help people whose lives have been devastated by gambling addiction, as well as helping to prevent young people and other at-risk groups from developing gambling problems.
 
Yours Sincerely
 
 
 
Maebh Leahy                                                                 Barry Grant
CEO                                                                                     CEO
Rutland Centre                                                             Problem Gambling Ireland                   

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Pre-Budget Submission Summary

• There are estimated to be between 28,000 and 40,000 problem gamblers in Ireland. 
• For every problem gambler, an additional 8-10 people’s lives are negatively affected.
• Ireland has the highest gambling losses, per resident adult, in Europe – the third highest in the world. 
• There is currently no statutory funding for problem gambling treatment, prevention or research.
• The HSE does not include gambling addiction in its 2017 Service Plan.
• The financial cost to the exchequer of problem gambling could be somewhere between €21.2 million and €98 million.    
• In 2010, the Institute of Public Health in Ireland stated: “From an economic perspective, evidence suggests that the health and social costs of problem gambling exceed government revenue gained from gambling taxes and businesses”
• Ireland has the lowest Betting Duty in Europe.  Over the past 15 years, while the gambling industry’s profits have increased dramatically, its tax liability has decreased from 5% to 1%.
• The effective turnover tax rate for gambling services in the UK is 1.5%.
• In the UK, voluntary contributions by the gambling industry, to fund problem gambling services have been shown not to work.
• Currently all funds raised from Betting Duty are dedicated to the Horse Racing and Greyhound Fund.  Brian Kavanagh, CEO of Horse Racing Ireland (the main recipient of Betting Duty funding), stated that funding addiction services from Betting Duty would be ‘eminently sensible’
• A minimum increase in Betting Duty of 0.1% would raise in the region of €5 million Euros, which could be allocated to problem gambling services. This could be an interim measure, until such time as the Social Fund (outlined in the Gambling Control Bill) is active.