If bookies can limit the major winners, force them to ‘warn big losers too’
BOOKIES need to cut off problem gamblers using the same technology that alerts them to hot streaks from lucky punters, campaigners believe.
Such a move could only be policed if Ireland were to have a gambling regulator. However, the introduction of such a regulator in Ireland – which has been on the cards since the publication of the Gambling Control Bill in 2013 – has not happened and the industry has continued to be unregulated.
In Britain, a gambling regulator has been in place since 2007. Last month, one of the biggest UK operators, SkyBet, was fined £1m for failing to protect vulnerable customers,
‘Probably the least regulated country’
and allowing more than 730 self-excluded users – who voluntarily requested that they be legally banned from gambling – to use duplicate accounts.
In February, William Hill Bookmakers, which also operates in Ireland, was fined £6.2m (€7m) for failing to spot problem gamblers and prevent money laundering.
Sinn Féin MEP Lynn Boylan, who has been a long-standing advocate of gambling regulation in Ireland, believes regulation is essential.
‘Ireland is probably the least regulated country when it comes to gambling. The British model has shown that when you give a regulator teeth they can identify what’s going on. In Ireland it’s a free-for-all.
‘Ireland is third in the world for gambling losses for a country per head of population. When it comes to online gambling we’re No.1,’ she said.
Ms Boylan highlighted the case of Tony O’Reilly which, she said, shows everything that is wrong with the current system. Mr O’Reilly was working as a postman, earning €35,000 a year, when his Paddy Power betting account had a turnover of €10m – €1.7m of which he stole from his employer to fuel his habit. If Mr O’Reilly had been gambling in the UK, Paddy Power would have had to conduct a ‘source of wealth’ check. He was sentenced to four years in jail, with one year suspended.
CEO of Problem Gambling Ireland Barry Grant, said the self-exclusion policy for problem gamblers in Ireland isn’t working. ‘Self-exclusion in Ireland is deeply flawed for land-based gambling operators. A person would have to self-exclude from every individual venue [bookies or casino] that they would be likely to pass. In the UK, they have a self-exclusion scheme for betting shops and one for online gambling, which all licensed online operators must sign up to. These systems could be rolled out in Ireland and are badly needed.’ A Department of Justice spokesperson said: ‘The critical update approved by the Government was for the establishment of an independent regulatory authority for gambling.’ The Government working group devising a structure and remit for a gambling regulator is expected to finalise its work by end of this year.
A spokesperson for Paddy Power Betfair said: ‘We strongly support the introduction of the Gambling Control Bill and have consistently called for it.
‘With regards to the Tony O’Reilly case – we cannot comment on the details of any individual customer account but I would stress that our procedures have evolved since the time of that case in 2011.’