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From the Irish Independent[/url:c21s6r5x]:
Minister for Sport Martin Cullen has threatened to ban internet betting in Ireland if bookmakers here don’t cough up more money to the Exchequer for the controversial Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund
Tuesday’s emergency budget will confirm that the Fund will be reduced by just over €1.5m for this year, despite widespread predictions that it was facing a major cut in the face of the country’s worsening economic situation.
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The Minister, who said that a levy of 0.5 per cent on internet gambling would yield over €100m, added: “The reality is that most betting is now offshore. There are choices to be made, and I am making it clear to the industry that we will make those choices. The ultimate choice would be to ban it. That approach has been taken in America and perhaps it will be taken in other countries as well. However, I do not want to go down that road. I believe there is a means of taking action.”
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Ireland’s decision to give all its betting tax receipts to just two sports is in stark contrast to the regimes in the UK and Australia. But the Government’s plan has the support of the horse racing and greyhound industries here.
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“(Paddy Power says) And by the way, HRI is already way overfunded in comparison to other countries. What exactly has happened to the €545m in direct grants they have received over the past eight years?“By the end of this year, that figure will have risen to over €600m as the Sunday Independent can reveal that the Government intends to make €68.128m available to the Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund.
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And that’s good news for a number of extremely wealthy tax exiles and foreign citizens who are among the biggest winners of prize money in Irish racing. Minster Cullen told the committee that the cash injection was needed to preserve jobs in the industry but the most recent figures available, seen by the Sunday Independent, show that over half of Horse Racing Ireland’s expenditure goes on prize money.In 2007, almost one-third of overall prize money in Flat racing ended up in the hands of a mere eight owners. These included Mrs John Magnier, wife of tax exile John Magnier, the Aga Khan, the Maktoums, Derrick Smith, a former director of Ladbrokes based in Barbados, and Michael Tabor, a former London bookie now enjoying tax exile status in Monaco. The highest earning National Hunt owner, with over €1m, was another tax exile, JP McManus.
Emphasis mine.
Why shouldn’t they pay a levy on what they make online from Irish racing? Bunch of Isle of Man scroungers.
Bunch of Isle of Man scroungers.
And what exactly are your lot? You’ve soaked up God knows how much in EU funding / subsidies – and you’ve still got kids begging on the street!
And what exactly are your lot? You’ve soaked up God knows how much in EU funding / subsidies – and you’ve still got kids begging on the street!
Come again??
Could you expand on that a little scallywag76
I wouldn’t have thought that it needed it but:
While most Irish people will have sped past the blue signs along smooth new roads up and down the country, indicating that "This project was co-financed by the EU", fewer people will be aware of the extent of change that the EU has helped initiate in Ireland. Since joining in 1973, the difference between what Ireland paid in and what the EU paid out is about €55 billion euros.
EU funding has gone into into every aspect of Irish life: building the economy; improving transport and communication networks; increasing trade; creating employment; promoting cultural diversity, peace and understanding; cleaning up the environment; restoring tourism amenities; sustaining a country life and protecting human rights.
Source: http://ec.europa.eu/ireland/general_inf … dex_en.htm
And it’s still not uncommon to be accosted on the streets by children asking for money.
So your reference to ‘Isle of Man scroungers’ seems a bit rich!
I was being ironic scallywag, (something completely lost on you obviously). I have an evening off begging today so I’ll explain it to you if you want me to.
So because we received a few badly-needed pounds (and Francs, Marks, & Lira) back in the day, we shouldn’t have children begging on the streets – is that it?
I’ll have you know that it is our beggars’ God-given right to beg on the streets of our cities and towns and our court system has upheld this right provided the beggars in question do not harrass passers-by
Are there no underpriviliged citizens in "The Village" then?
Now Now !!! whats begging got to do with Internet gambling ban ??
seriously do we really think the Irish gov would be foolish enough to try that
cheers
Ricky [/u]
Sure us lazy Irishmen are bone idle.
We’ve been sat on our backsides for the past 30+ years while bleeding Brussells dry.
Could you expand on that a little scallywag76
And it’s still not uncommon to be accosted on the streets by children asking for money.
So your reference to ‘Isle of Man scroungers’ seems a bit rich!
Surely the mark of all great Capalist states
SHL
It would be interesting to see how they would impliment a ban, if they were foolish enough to try it.
As for the begging remarks, most of the beggars I saw when I was in Dublin were Romanian or something. I only saw one Irish woman with her kid begging.
Dont forget all that tax free stallion sex, the horse whisperes will be bloody bsy helping all thsoe stallions fill in their tax returns.
I love the fact the irish tote will pay four places on sixteen runner races regarless of the condtions of the race ( Other bookmakers shame on you).
Frankly if you operate in a juristuction or takes on it, surley the locals have a right too their cut. If the bookmakers wont play fair then bollucks too them and serve them right, people will have too go too local bookies do it the old fashioned way.
I was being ironic scallywag, (something completely lost on you obviously)
Obviously. The attempt didn’t leap off the page and it came across, to me at least, as a cheap shot at the Island due to it’s association with some online gambling outfits. We take enough ill-informed comment and criticism as it is.
However, if your comment wasn’t intended in that spirit, I apologise for my respsonse.
I find it ironic scallywag that a company who wears its Irishness on its sleeve will not contribute a penny of the significant online profit it generates from Irish racing back into the sport in Ireland. For all their bluster Paddy Power are about as Irish as the Manx cat.
I understand where Martin Cullen is coming from on this one, although as is usual for an Irish politician he’s about 10 years behind on the issue. The current levy as it stands is not enough to support the Irish horseracing industry, the Irish Tote is in a 1950’s timewarp and the majority of "Irish" betting companies that are online, are offshore and/or have their telephone betting operations offshore as well.
Time for these "Irish" bookmakers to start paying their fair share imo, why should REAL Irish taxpayers do it for them?
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