In just Five Days time, key representatives from across Ireland’s gaming sector, together with international regulators, operators and gaming law experts will gather at Clontarf Castle, Dublin to examine proposed changes to Irish gambling laws and to debate a newly published report produced by DKM Economic Consultants on the potential economic impact of regulatory change in Ireland. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.

With a historic shake-up of Ireland’s betting and gaming laws now underway, GamblingCompliance will host a landmark two-day conference to examine Ireland’s new gambling landscape. The conference will be held at Clontarf Castle in Dublin on October 13th and 14th.

GamblingCompliance can confirm that Pat Rabbitte TD, Labour Party spokesperson for justice, will address delegates at a landmark two-day conference to examine Ireland’s new gambling landscape. Rabbitte will participate in a debate on possible regulatory approaches to fixed-odds betting terminals in the Irish Republic when the conference takes place at the Clontarf Castle Hotel in Dublin on 13 and 14 October.

Whilst most European jurisdictions have adopted modern regulatory structures for gaming, the industry in Ireland remains regulated by antiquated laws such as the Betting Act 1931 and the Gaming and Lotteries Act 1956.

Justice minister Dermott Ahern has signalled that casinos will be legalised and a new regulatory authority for gambling established. In his first utterances on the issue since taking office, Ahern told the Irish Times that the existing laws enshrined in the 1956 Gaming and Lotteries Act were “past their sell-by date”.

As dust begins to gather on the report of the Irish Government’s casino review committee, international experts have warned that Ireland should not dither in implementing the committee’s recommendations via concrete legislative reform. However, weighing hard on politicians are concerns about how regulatory change will affect the Irish racing industry.

Despite being a part of the UK, Northern Ireland has its own distinct regulatory regime for gambling which is based largely on the legislation that was in place in the UK prior to the enactment of the 2005 Gambling Act.

An announcement by bookmaker William Hill that it plans to close 14 shops in the Republic of Ireland may prove an early warning of much greater suffering to come in the already competitive sector, as tax and regulatory pressures compound the effects of a steep economic downturn.

Ireland’s Department of Justice has requested submissions from interested parties as part of an increasingly urgent consultation process ahead of a review of gambling legislation by the cash-strapped government.

Ireland is facing the biggest overhaul of its gambling regulations in over fifty years, but significant changes are on hold until the electioneering is done.