Catherine Murphy
Question:286. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the amount generated in lottery ticket sales for the bi-weekly draw in 2018, 2019 and to date in 2020. [25346/20]
View answerTuesday, 22 September 2020
Questions (286, 287, 288)
Catherine Murphy
Question:287. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the amount generated by scratch card sales in 2018, 2019 and to date in 2020. [25347/20]
View answerCatherine Murphy
Question:288. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the amount donated to charities from money derived from lotto and scratch card sales in 2018, 2019 and to date in 2020. [25348/20]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 286, 287 and 288 together.
I am informed by the Office of the National Lottery Regulator that sales of Draw Based Games (including the two bi-weekly Lotto and EuroMillions draws) amounted to €537.3m in 2018 and €586.7m in 2019. Sales of Scratch Cards and online Instant Win Games amounted to €267.7m in 2018 and €297.8m in 2019.
As a result of the commercially sensitive nature of the information requested, and in accordance with the licence, financial information provided to the National Lottery Regulator may be made available by the Regulator to the Minister but shall otherwise be kept confidential, save as required by law or with the prior written consent of the Licensee. The Regulator has informed me that the Licensee, Premier Lotteries Ireland, has given its consent to the release of sales information from its audited annual returns for 2018 and 2019 but declined to consent to the release of figures for the current year to date.
As per the terms of the National Lottery Licence, 65% of Gross Gaming Revenue (total sales minus prizes) is made available for use by Good Causes projects. A total of €224.7m was transferred from the National Lottery Fund to the Exchequer in the year ended 31 December 2018, €250.7m was transferred in the year ended 31 December 2019 and €181.6m has been transferred in 2020 to date (which includes €16.1m of historic amounts relevant to the previous licence).
Funding from the National Lottery is provided by the Oireachtas, in accordance with the National Lottery Act, through expenditure subheads which form part of Departmental funding Programmes.
Appendix 1 of the Revised Estimates for Public Services, which is published each year, provides a breakdown of expenditure subheads, and consequently Good Causes projects, which are supported by proceeds of the National Lottery. As set out in the Appendix, the funding allocation for these subheads typically exceeds the amounts raised by National Lottery sales, and the balance of the expenditure allocation comes from normal Exchequer sources.