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Report
of the Gaming Commission - Posted July 10th 2008
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here)
Regulating
gaming in Ireland - a report from the casino
comittee.
Minister signals new gambling laws will allow casinos
- Posted June 21st 2008
Irish
Times (Full
story here)
MINISTER FOR Justice Dermot Ahern has signalled his intention to liberalise the State's gambling laws by legalising casinos and creating a new regulatory authority for all forms of gaming.
In his first comments on the issue since becoming Minister, Mr Ahern told The Irish Times that existing laws on gambling were "past their sell-by date".
However, he promised no changes would be made until cross-party agreement was reached and the public was consulted on the issue. Most parties had agreed to the proposal to set up a cross-party committee on gambling but talks were continuing, he said.
Although casinos are illegal under the 1956 Gaming and Lotteries Act, up to 50 private members' clubs offering roulette, blackjack and other casino-type games have sprung up around the country. Asked if he intended to close these clubs down, as a predecessor, Michael McDowell, proposed, the Minister replied: "We are past the day when we can outlaw them. What we need to do is regulate them in a way that is fair."
Mr Ahern promised to publish the report of the inter-departmental Casino Regulatory Committee established by Mr McDowell soon. The Irish Times understands it recommends legalising medium-size casinos subject to strict regulatory controls. Casino licences should be awarded according to criteria set by a regulatory body and should not be auctioned off in a bidding or "beauty" contest. The age limit for gaming should be set at 18, and possibly at 21 for casinos. Government policies across different departments should be reviewed for consistency and more research should be carried out into the effects of problem gambling.
The report is strongly against allowing fixed odds betting terminals - described by Labour justice spokesman Pat Rabbitte as "the crack cocaine of gambling" - in bookmakers' premises or pubs but is equivocal about allowing them in licensed gaming premises. In a letter to Labour leader Eamon Gilmore, Mr Ahern says he has "no intention or interest of using the cloak" of a cross-party committee to force changes.
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Laws on
Casino Regulation delayed
MARK HENNESSY, Political Correspondent
- Sunday March 23rd 2008
MINISTER FOR Justice Brian Lenihan has decided to delay making any decision about legislating on unregulated casinos and to seek the creation of an all-party Oireachtas consensus on the controversial issue.
His predecessor, Michael McDowell, commissioned a report on the subject, which was given to the Department of Justice last summer - but ministers have shied away from making final decisions on it.
However, the report strongly recommends against the construction of any super-casinos, such as those planned by the British government during Tony Blair's reign, and scrapped subsequently by the current prime minister Gordon Brown, The Irish Times understands.
The document also notes the growing scale of the business internationally and domestically, and its potential for tax revenues, along with noting the dangers that exist for encouraging gambling addiction.
The gaming industry had believed up to now that the Government would move next month to reform the Gaming and Lotteries Act 1956 and regulate Irish-based casinos, including those operating online from Ireland.
Although the Department of Justice has remained silent on the issue, it is understood that the Minister for Justice believes that no simple solution exists, and that a cross-party consensus must be achieved if any progress is to be made.
Casinos in Ireland get around the existing law by operating as private members' clubs.
Mr McDowell had declared his intention to see all of them closed, but he was eventually forced to back down on this.
Lenihan set to regulate rather than ban casinos
By Niamh Doohan
Sunday December 30 2007
Justice Minister Brian Lenihan has backed away from an all-or-nothing pitch to ban casinos after ordering draft legislation to legalise gaming clubs in the new year.
A substantial casino licence fee, higher taxes than the existing betting industry, meticulous financial checks, and an over-21s age requirement, will form part of a new Casinos Bill.
The move comes after a report from a Government appointed committee recommended the gaming industry be put on a legal footing.
Plans are also at an advanced stage to bring in a statutory gaming commission to regulate the casino industry.
Clubs without sufficient solvency requirements will be investigated by the commission. A mandatory requirement for fingerprint recognition technology and greater security measures will form part of the draft legislation.
Only one casino in Ireland, Dermot Desmond's Sporting Emporium off Grafton Street Dublin, would currently adhere to the proposed legislation. The billionaire financier spent €5.5m on the club -- a 13,000 square-feet premises -- that opened in 2005.
The Government's casino committee was appointed after a cabinet discussion in July 2006 on proposals by former Justice Minister Michael McDowell to crack down on 18 casinos in Dublin.
The Government's move towards legalisation of casinos will close down some of the 'members only' gambling clubs that exist in Dublin and other areas of the country.
It has also been recommended that Horse Racing Ireland be allowed to apply for casino licences.
Posted
12.8.07
Ireland's
confusing gaming laws: As we move into the new era
have Ireland's governement caught the "mood of
the people". JJ Woods, our Director of
Operations, details his recent submission in support of casino
licencing in Ireland. You can read his submission here.
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