Ireland Delays Online Casino Legislation
Ireland’s new legislations to better regulate the country’s online casino industry is experiencing regulatory delays. The government has come out as saying that they need more time in order to fine tune the new laws amongst concerns of a growth in gambling and betting and addiction in the country.
Ireland Gambling Reform
Although signed into law in December of 2019, The Ireland Gaming and Lotteries Bill, has yet to be implemented. The law sets out to deliver new safer gambling measures to the entire Irish gambling industry, introducing a variety of regulations designed to protect players, such as maximum online casino bonuses and stake limits.
The law also details the formation of a gambling regulator to monitor both land-based and online casino offerings, while looking to better control gambling websites and apps as well as any gambling-related advertising. The commitment of the regulator is to ensure player well-being and public safety within the industry.
According to David Stanton, Minister of State, the new gambling measures were due to be released this year. However, a recent statement by Helen McEntee, the country’s Minister for Justice, has said that the regulations will be delayed as the government needs more time to develop and launch the regulatory framework.
At this stage it is not clear when the new measures will be introduced, but the delay is due to set back the introduction of the gambling regulatory framework until at least 2021. The Minister of Justice has said that the government is still committed to introducing the new regulations, but a number of challenges have arisen that require further deliberation for formulation of the new laws.
A Shifting Gambling Industry
As Ireland reports an increase in betting and problem gambling across the region, a comprehensive and effective regulatory model will be key to protecting the region and its players.
In other news, Ireland’s neighbour, Northern Ireland is also looking to introduce new legislations for the gambling industry, particularly within the online casino space. New legislations will help the region to better regulate online gambling while introducing a number of measures to protect players from gambling-related harm.
This includes the introduction of a number of protective measures to control online casino participation, however at this stage these measures are still unclear as lawmakers are considering various different suggestions for these legislation changes. Discussions are being held around withdrawal reversals for instance while other laws will look into how to deal with problem gambling issues as well provide help for families of gambling addicts.