Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 29 November 2018
11. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if he will address the delays in publishing the gambling control Bill, the general scheme of which was published in 2013; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49603/18]
View answerIn 2011, the then Minister for Justice and Equality, Alan Shatter, announced plans for new legislation on gambling. Unfortunately, however, no new legislation has been enacted by the Houses of the Oireachtas. It is important that we progress legislation in respect of gambling, which is causing significant social problems and which must be regulated. What is the reason for the delay with the Government's gambling control Bill? When will it be forthcoming?
I am happy to update the Deputy on developments concerning the reform of our laws on the licensing and regulation of gaming and gambling activities.
Following the Government's approval and publication in July 2013, the general scheme of the gambling control Bill was referred to the then Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, which I chaired, for consideration and observations. When joint committee's report on the general scheme was laid before the Houses in November 2013, the matter was with the Office of the Attorney General for consideration and drafting until late 2017. At that point, my Department and I sought the Government's permission to review the draft legislation to take into account technological and other changes that had occurred in the interim.
The Government duly granted permission to review the 2013 general scheme by way of decision of 10 January 2018, aimed at establishing an independent regulatory authority for the gambling industry in Ireland.
To advance the review of the 2013 general scheme of the Gambling Control Bill, per the Government decision of 10 January 2018, I chaired an interdepartmental working group on gambling, comprising all stakeholder Departments and the Office of the Attorney General. The group met on five occasions between February and June of this year and reviewed all the provisions of the 2013 scheme as well as other relevant developments since. Further, the group in its deliberations had regard to the Government's preference for the establishment of an independent regulatory authority. It is the Government's view that an independent body would be best placed to conduct the significant and complex range of licensing, regulatory, monitoring, inspection and enforcement tasks of the industry in all its manifestations. The group is currently finalising its report, which I hope to bring 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 is currently being drafted by the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel. It is based on Part 13 of the Civil Law and Courts (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2017 approved for publication by the Government. The amendments proposed under this 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, updating stake and prize limits and standardising the minimum gambling and betting age to 18. Further, it is intended that this Bill will provide greater clarity and certainty for all promoters and participants involved, primarily in local fundraising efforts, and to ensure the best conduct in the promotion of such activities. It is hoped this Bill will be published before the end of the current Oireachtas session.
I thank the Minister of State for the reply but the Government's delay in this area is simply unforgivable. As I said in the opening question, it was in 2011 that the then Minister, Deputy Shatter, announced plans to change the law on gambling. In 2013, the Department of Justice and Equality published the general scheme of a Gambling Control Bill which was expected to update the 1956 legislation. Since the publication of that general scheme in 2013, there has been extremely limited progress. We engaged on this matter and were hoping the Government would bring forward legislation but such was its delay that earlier this year Fianna Fáil brought forward its own legislation based on the general scheme of the Gambling Control Bill. My colleagues, Deputies Jack Chambers and Rabbitte, were instrumental in that. We produced the legislation and I think it got through Second Stage in this House. It is now the responsibility of the Government to ensure that Bill gets through or its own legislation is promptly produced. We have waited too long and we need adequate answers.
I am not happy either that this has been delayed. We have established a working group which is reviewing the main provisions of the 2013 Gambling Control Bill. In this regard, the group gave particular attention to considering the optimum structure of the proposed regulatory authority having regard to the decision on this by Government on 10 January 2018. The group considered governance and logistical practicalities of the establishment of the proposed regulator. Other issues considered by the group included the future licensing of gambling activities, including gaming, arcades, lotteries and casinos, combatting possible money laundering through gambling, improved protection for consumers and vulnerable persons, the approach to be taken to advertising sponsorship and the promotion of gambling activities and match fixing.
The working group will inform the redrafting of the general scheme and assist in the achievement of the objectives of betting regulation, the channelling of all gambling in legitimate ways, enhancing consumer protection and increasing the protection of vulnerable persons.
The Government did not oppose the Private Members' Bill. It was very useful to have that Bill and to debate the issues. As I noted during the Second Stage debate, it is a reproduction, as the Deputy said, in its entirety of the general scheme of the Bill approved by Government and published in 2013. The Private Members' Bill, surprisingly, made no mention of the significant decision of the Government in January 2018 to update the 2013 scheme and to produce independent statutory regulation.
The Minister of State is right that it was in January 2018 that the Cabinet approved several proposals to update the 2013 general scheme. It approved the proposal to establish an independent regulatory authority, which we support, for control and regulation of the gambling industry. We are told that this interdepartmental working group has met on five occasions since January 2018. What progress has been made on this? Where is the draft legislation? The Government and Fine Gael have been talking about this since 2011, which is seven years ago. It is hard to understand why it is taking so long for a Government Bill to be introduced in this House. The current situation is untenable and unfair. It is not simply unfair to people who are in the business of gambling who need to be properly regulated and many of them recognise that. It is especially unfair, however, on the very many victims and their families of gambling addiction throughout this country. We cannot say we empathise with those people until we regulate the gambling business.
The lack of action in this area is difficult to justify. As Deputy O'Callaghan said, the first Bill was brought forward by the then Minister, Deputy Shatter, more than seven years ago now. The scale of the harm that gambling can do has been laid bare before the public in recent times. In many instances, it has devastated families and individuals. There is a clear need for action. Ireland is recognised as a jurisdiction that is practically the wild west in terms of lack of regulation. Previous Ministers and the Department in previous iterations recognised that lack of regulation and the need for legislation, and yet it has not progressed. There is a wide consensus in society, even within the industry but most of all among families devastated by problem gambling, that this needs to be dealt with. Gambling is something can have a place, provided it is properly regulated. However, that is not the case now and unless we legislate, people will continue to have free rein.
As I said, it is intended to publish a Bill before the end of this Dáil session, which will be some progress. I am also frustrated at the lack of progress. We had five meetings, which I chaired. They were long detailed meetings and I was struck by the complexity and how far this area has developed in the last number of years. There were some very serious people around the table representing almost all Government Departments and agencies concerned with this issue. I have seen a draft copy of the report and it is quite detailed, long and involved.
While regulation is important and desirable and we will have it, it must be stressed that no amount of regulation can act as a panacea for problem gambling and gambling addiction. Even in a well-regulated jurisdiction such as Britain, 0.8% of the population aged over 16 identified as problem gamblers in 2015. This underlines the fact that problem gambling and gambling addiction are ultimately public health issues. It is important colleagues understand that regulation will only go so far in assisting problem gambling and that addiction is a health issue.
