A STRONG field turned out for the Irish Bookmakers Association’s pre-budget submission this week.
The notable absentee was Paddy Power, the thoroughbred of Irish bookmaking, which is not a member of the IBA.
In essence, the bookies want longer opening hours in the winter, licences to use tablet technology in betting shops and reform of betting taxes.
Joe Lewins, managing director here of the British chain Ladbrokes, told me how it had laid off 125 staff (mostly students) for the winter because the law forces branches to close at 6.30pm between September 1st and March 31st each year, except when an Irish race meeting is taking place (usually Friday nights in Dundalk). No such restriction applies in the UK.
The rest of the year round, shops can stay open here until 9.30pm. Ladbrokes estimates that 20 per cent of its turnover is earned from 6.30pm onwards.
The IBA estimates that €5.28 million in additional betting duty would be generated for the exchequer each year.
The IBA also wants the Government to “embrace technology” and allow bookmakers to install “betting tablets” in their shops with a fixed licence cost.
“This will allow shops offer iPad type betting to their customers and raise tax on same,” the IBA said, while stressing that this would not be slot machines by the back door.
The bookies argue that some punters are bringing their own tablets into shops and betting online. This does little for the turnover of the betting shop.
The IBA has estimated that up to €4 million could be raised by licensing this technology and about €9 million from licensing the estimated 10,000 gaming terminals already in place.
These seem like reasonable suggestions, albeit that the benefits to the exchequer are probably on the optimistic side.
The bigger issue for the Government is how to tax online and telephone betting. Online betting is massive and growing rapidly. Most of these operations are offshore and go untouched.
The IBA offered to participate in any working group that might be set up to look at the issue. Fair enough, but that would probably only kick it out another five years.
