New casino legislation in Ireland remains unclear

We have previously reported in our Irish casino news section about the fact that new gambling legislation will not allow the giant planned casino in Tipperary to go ahead but what is not clear is how the new planned legislation will affect the various interested parties in the Irish casino world. Clearly Richard Quirke, the entrepreneur behind the proposed super casino project  is not happy but he has been reported in Irish casino news as saying that the casino was only part of the project and it remains to be seen which other parts remain viable but the major bookmakers such as Paddy Power and Ladbrokes who run online casinos are strangely quiet. The only thing that has been reported in the Irish casino news is that these bookmakers will not be able to place fixed odds betting terminals in their shops but casinos.ie has warned about these on several occasions saying that better odds are available at online casinos. The Gaming and Leisure Association of Ireland are reported in the casino news to welcome the proposals but as they represent most of the Private members clubs that will fall into the category of “moderate sized casinos” that it appears will be accepted, this comes as no surprise. Of course it is long not yet clear exactly what the new legislation will and will not allow but what is clear in the Irish casino news is that the government in the form of Justice Minister Alan Shatter and the Taoseach Enda Kenny are interested in the possible income from taxes that regulation and licensing of land based and online casinos can bring whilst at the same time quoting protection of vulnerable people as a reason for legislation. We do not expect to see the legislation until sometime next year but rumours continue to circulate in the Irish casino news about the possible content..