DAYTIME betting ads will start to disappear from our TVs and online over the next 12 months as landmark new laws to tackle gambling addiction come into force.
On Wednesday night, the Dail passed the Gambling Regulation Bill through the final stage with the legislation now sent to President Michael D Higgins to sign into action.
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The bill has been four years in the making with Fianna Fail’s James Browne facing heavy lobbying and pushback from the gambling and horse racing industries who had concerns about its impact.
The bill bans all gambling advertising on TV and online between 5.30am and 9pm with multi million euro fines and possible prison sentences for the execs of companies that break the ban.
The new law will also clamp down on gambling incentives from bookmakers such as free bets, VIP treatment or free hospitality.
Bookies will also be required to pay into a new social impact fund to help people struggling with addiction.
The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland has been set up as part of the legislation to push through these changes with CEO Anne Marie Caulfield already in place and ready to hit the ground running.
Minister James Browne told the Irish Sun: “The next step is to appoint a board and we’ll move on that very quickly and start commencing the different sections, get the licences issued.
“Our aim is to do it all within 12 months and that’s a tight timeline for something like this in regulating a €6billion to €9billion industry.
“Standing up the entire regulatory regime is a big task but we’re absolutely determined now that the legislation is passed to get it up and actionable as quick as possible.”
People will still be able to see ads and offers from bookmakers online if they choose to “opt-in” to see these promotions.
Minister Browne said it was important to push through this legislation in order to help tackle the rising problem of addiction which is ruining lives across the country.
He told the Irish Sun: “It is becoming more and more widespread. We’re drowning in gambling advertisements and that is having a real impact.
“We’ve had the gamblification of sport and the damage done from gambling is a silent addiction.
“People’s lives are being destroyed, houses repossessed, marriages breaking up, jobs lost but nobody really knows that someone has this type of addiction until it’s way too late.
“So I really wanted to bring in legislation that could address the gambling addiction in this country and put in a framework to regulate an industry that I think is doing a lot of damage to people – intentionally or unintentionally it is causing a lot of damage and that damage is getting worse.
“We’re seeing younger and younger people becoming addicts. We’re seeing more women becoming addicts and we chose to address that.
“It is a legitimate industry so we’re not banning the industry or anything like that but it does need to be regulated.”
Leading bookmaker Paddy Power welcomed the passing of the new gambling laws but said they are concerned some measures such as “win limits” could push people to black market gambling.
A spokesperson told the Irish Sun: “As a vocal advocate for regulation in Ireland for more than a decade, we welcome the new Gambling Regulation Bill but remain concerned about a number of unintended consequences.
“While we support much of what is contained within the new legislation, we believe the way it has been written could have an impact on the future of horse racing in Ireland and drive more players into the open arms of the unlicensed and unregulated black market.
“However, we look forward to working closely with the new Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland to help raise standards across the industry.”