Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 23 Nov 1993

Vol. 436 No. 1

Written Answers. - National Lottery Prizes.

Ivor Callely

Ceist:

49 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Finance the way in which the national lottery can make additional money payments in the lottery draw on occasion; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the general public would support the allocation of such additional moneys for named projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for Finance (Mr. B. Ahern)

Under the National Lottery Act, 1986 the number and value of prizes is a matter for commercial decision by the National Lottery Company and not one in which I would normally have a direct input.

It must be remembered that Lotto in particular is a jackpot-driven game. Large jackpots are very popular with players and experience has shown that as the jackpot grows, the number of players attracted to participate in the draw grows. Occasional boosts to jackpots are therefore essential if interest in the national lottery is to be sustained and developed.

The resulting boost to sales serves to increase the overall surplus, thereby increasing the amount of money available to fund beneficiary projects. If the size of jackpots were constrained in the way suggested, it would lead to lower sales and ultimately reduce the funds available for beneficiary projects.