Paddy Power moves to reassure parents about Facebook gambling service

Paddy Power is reassuring parents and campaign groups that no under 18s will be able to use its integrated gambling service on Facebook.

Earlier this week, the social network announced it is teaming up with the bookmaker to offer sports gambling through Paddy Power In Play - but it will only be available in the UK to start.

Campaign groups raised concerns that young people could still access the pages by lying about their age or using a parent's credit card.

However Paddy Power said that it will be policed strongly.

"It's going to go through the same age verification checks that Facebook would have anyway and that Paddy Power would have too," he said.

"So it is subject to exactly the same checks that you have from betting through Paddypower.com or through any other channel with us so it is very strongly policed in terms of age verification."

Meanwhile former Gaelic footballer and current addiction counsellor, Oisin McConville, said this app is another outlet for compulsive gambling.

"The more people we expose to this the more problems we are going to have," he said.

"Without being a kill joy about it I accept that there is very much a social side to this but also as a result of that we are going to have more problems."