Irish Labour Party proposes blanket gambling ad ban

Ireland’s Labour Party has drafted a new bill which would ban all forms of gambling advertising in Ireland on public health grounds.

This legislation, if passed, would end all broadcast and non-broadcast gambling ads, as well as prohibiting sponsorship of Irish sporting teams by gambling companies.

The only exceptions would be for advertising not-for-profit gambling, one-off events or where the promoter of the event derives no personal profit and has not held a similar event for three months prior.

In respect of non-broadcast advertising, the bill exempts race cards provided at horse and dog tracks.

The bill suggests individuals in breach of this legislation could face prison time of between six months and three years, as well as a one-off fine of €250,000 (£216,000). Repeat offenders could potentially face a €2,000 fine for every day that a subsequent breach occurs.

To ensure compliance with these measures, directors or senior managers of corporate bodies can also be liable for prosecution where breaches are identified and traced back to their respective companies.

Publication of the bill comes in the same week that two of Ireland’s leading sports organisations, the Gaelic Athletics Association (GAA) and Gaelic Players Association (GPA), called for new standards on gambling ads.

Both bodies said they would advocate a total ban on gambling advertising during live sport, similar to the UK’s whistle-to-whistle ban.

Proud to support @MarkWall1 on this really important bill.

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Tell us your thoughts @labour survey 👉 https://t.co/uyUSSAlOUR 👈#BeatTheAds pic.twitter.com/pilx4SyLXz

— Cllr James Humphreys (@humphreys) February 17, 2021

“Gambling addiction is a silent scourge across the nation, which is why the Labour Party has published legislation to address this national problem,” explained Irish Labour spokesperson on sport Mark Wall. “This legislation is more important now than ever.

“There have been big changes in recent years in the ease with which people can gamble due to our smartphones.

“Whereas previously there was some limit to the damage that could be caused as a result of people having to go to betting shops, now anyone can gamble any amount of money on their phone in an instant,” he added.

Officials behind the campaign have suggested as much as 75.4% of sports broadcasts in Ireland show at least one gambling ad, with gambling adverts the seventh most common ad shown on Irish TV.

A public consultation has now been launched into whether to proceed with passing the bill to the Irish parliament.