In recent years the Republic of Ireland has experienced something of an economic boom. Now as times get tougher financially across the world the Irish believe they can continue to prosper by liberalizing their gambling laws.

A Government working group has announced that the nation could only benefit from reforms to its gambling law along with the effects of the American ban on online gaming under the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) of 2006.

After two years of research, the Casino Committee has announced that current Irish gambling laws prohibiting casinos should be liberalized.

In addition, the group stated that the nation should take advantage of the online gambling ban in the US, which has forced many virtual casinos and sports betting websites to look for new sources of revenue.

'The recent United States prohibition of payment mechanisms for gambling online presents a window of opportunity for Ireland,” read a statement released by the Casino Committee.

“Should this opportunity be grasped within the appropriate timescale, Ireland, as a gaming friendly centre of excellence, can reasonably expect to attract a reasonable portion of this dynamic industry.”

Ireland prosperity since the 1990s has been down to, in part, its ability to attract foreign investors, especially in the IT sphere, due to a low corporate tax rate of 12.5 percent. Foreign firms such as Online gambling website designers CryptoLogic, Google and Yahoo have set up European headquarters in Dublin with another major factor being the quality of the Irish workforce.

The Committee stated that online gambling, if legalized in Ireland, should be closely monitored and controlled in order to prevent minors from gambling and curb gambling addictions. In addition, it recommended that casino games and sports betting be kept separate.

 

Print version