Vol. 496 No. 3
239 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for Finance the projections for sales of the national lottery for the next three years; if it is proposed to increase the number of outlet licences to be granted; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22515/98]
Lottery revenues cannot be predicted with any degree of certainty and for this reason it is not the practice of the national lottery company to publish projections or development plans in advance. With regard to licensing, under section 7 (1) (a) of the National Lottery Act, 1986 the total number of persons who may be authorised to sell national lottery tickets shall be determined by the national lottery company with the consent of the Minister for Finance. The company advise that their agent network at present is sufficient to meet their requirements and for this reason they have no plans to appoint additional agents.
240 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for Finance the number of licences on issue in respect of outlets for the national lottery; the criteria used for selecting premises to be used as outlets; the breakdown of these outlets by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22516/98]
There are approximately 3,600 licences available for the sale of scratch card tickets of which 2,010 also sell on-line lotto tickets. In appointing agents, the national lottery company use the following selection criteria: location; type of outlet; opening hours; turnover; traffic-type of customer; number of staff; number of cash points; condition of outlet; seasonal trade; proximity of other existing agents; reason for wanting agency; general disposition of applicant; applicant's experience in business; existing scratch card sales if applicant is seeking lotto; credit worth; type of tenancy — freehold or lease long-term short-term; and owner operated or staff managed business.
A breakdown of outlets by county is a follows:
|
County |
No. of Lotto agents |
Total No. of agents |
|
Carlow |
20 |
41 |
|
Cavan |
31 |
52 |
|
Clare |
42 |
85 |
|
Cork |
218 |
428 |
|
Donegal |
97 |
179 |
|
Dublin |
567 |
870 |
|
Galway |
112 |
200 |
|
Kerry |
75 |
137 |
|
Kildare |
60 |
106 |
|
Kilkenny |
32 |
65 |
|
Laois |
17 |
46 |
|
Leitrim |
26 |
54 |
|
Limerick |
92 |
180 |
|
Longford |
24 |
43 |
|
Louth |
63 |
89 |
|
Mayo |
80 |
153 |
|
Meath |
56 |
98 |
|
Monaghan |
26 |
45 |
|
Offaly |
30 |
55 |
|
Roscommon |
33 |
53 |
|
Sligo |
37 |
73 |
|
Tipperary |
83 |
155 |
|
Waterford |
48 |
87 |
|
Westmeath |
46 |
72 |
|
Wexford |
55 |
119 |
|
Wicklow |
50 |
97 |
