New Irish gambling regulator starts operations

The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland is now fully operational with a seven-strong board.

Ireland.- A major milestone has been reached in the reform of Irish gambling regulations as the new Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) began its supervisory duties yesterday (March 5). The regulator was created under the Gambling Regulation Act 2024, which was approved in October and which replaces the Betting Act of 1931.

The GRAI’s CEO Anne Marie Caulfield had already been designated to the post in 2022. A seven-member board has now been appointed to oversee the new regulator’s activities. The board will be chaired by Paul Quinn, the former CEO of the Irish Procurement Office. The other board members are:

• Celine Craig, former chief executive of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland.
• Marion Kelly, chief executive of the Irish Banking Culture Board.
• Rita Purcell, deputy chief executive at the Health Products Regulatory Authority.
• Dr. Colin O’Driscoll, senior psychologist and clinical lead for the HSE’s Mid-West Addiction Services.
• Michael McGrath SC.
• David Hickson, financial controller at the Community Foundation of Ireland.

Craig was appointed to the board in his capacity as a media expert while Purcell and O’Driscoll will serve as health experts and McGrath and Hickson were named as legal counsels.

Confirming the appointments, Ireland’s minister for justice Jim O’Callaghan said: “Today marks a new era for the regulation of gambling in the Irish State. The establishment of the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland is a further step towards replacing Ireland’s outdated gambling laws with a streamlined and simplified licensing framework.

“This will reflect the nature of modern gambling while taking into account the harms associated with problem gambling, providing safeguards to protect people from those harms, especially children.”

As part of the Republic of Ireland’s 2025 budget, the GRAI will receive €9.1m in funding this year, including €4m for ICT investment. One of the regulator’s first tasks will be to create a national gambling exclusion register to allow players to self-exclude from all gambling and gambling promotions.

The new regulator will also have the responsibility of creating and overseeing a Social Impact Fund. Like the upcoming British gambling levy, this will fund gambling harm research, training and education through a mandatory levy on gambling operators.

It will also be up to the GRAI to police the advertising rules introduced under Ireland’s new gambling legislation. These include a ban on gambling advertisements on TV, radio and on-demand audiovisual media between 5.30am and 9pm. The Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland (ASA Ireland) will also monitor compliance with gambling advertising standards.

Caulfield said: “I greatly welcome the appointment of the seven-member Authority and the establishment of Údarás Rialála Cearrbhachais na hÉireann. I would like to thank the Ministers, Oireachtas members, the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel and Department of Justice officials for their work in bringing about our establishment. I look forward to fulfilling our mandate and delivering a safe, well-regulated and transparent sector, with consumer protection at its core.”