Plan for national gambling control office to tackle sector

New laws to create a national gambling control office to clamp down on addiction, restrict advertising, and tackle alleged money-laundering in the sector could be introduced before Christmas under plans being pushed by Fianna Fáil.

The party’s weekly meeting of TDs and senators will tonight be asked to support the move amid concern over alleged delays in addressing problems and fears the prevalence of gambling online is putting a generation at risk.

While no agreement has been made with Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil’s frontbench members yesterday agreed to back plans put forward by children’s spokeswoman Anne Rabbitte, justice spokesman Jim O’Callaghan, and back-bencher Jack Chambers to table the bill before the Christmas break.