The recent news that County Down GAA club Mayobridge GAC had to cancel their raffle for a new house should be of concern to many GAA clubs and other sporting or community organisations who regularly hold these types of draws as much needed fundraisers.

It has been reported that the draw was cancelled following a small number of complaints to the police, who subsequently advised the organisers that their raffle may be in breach of our gambling legislation and they could be liable to criminal convictions if they continued with it.

At present, gambling in Northern Ireland (other than the National Lottery) is regulated by the Betting, Gaming, Lotteries and Amusements (NI) Order 1985 (“the 1985 Order”) as amended by the Betting and Lotteries (NI) Order 1994. The 1985 Order is itself based on old GB law from the 1960s which has subsequently been repealed and replaced by the Gambling Act 2005. Northern Ireland is yet to follow suit with its own updated version and with the doors of Stormont closed, no changes will be made anytime soon. The current laws have been described as complex, framed in antiquated style which makes it difficult to understand, and may not address the changing world of gambling.

Under our current legislation, it is unlawful to conduct in Northern Ireland any competition which offers prizes, where success does not depend to a substantial degree on the exercise of skill. There are certain strict exemptions to this and all prize draws or lotteries are illegal unless they are;

1.Small lotteries at exempt entertainments (e.g. a fete, bazaar, gala dinner, sporting event or similar event)

2.Private lotteries (where the sale of tickets or chances in confined to members of a society (not established for gaming purposes) or to people who either live or work in the same premises)

2016 Northern Ireland Gambling Prevalence Survey This publication presents the results of a Department for Communities' 2016 Gambling Prevalence Survey. Published 3 May 2017. A review of Northern Ireland's gambling laws was announced by the Northern Irish Executive in January 2013, but change never materialised. In more recent times, Northern Ireland has been without a functioning devolved administration after the last Northern Ireland Executive collapsed in early 2017. This has further delayed any legislative reforms. Gambling Laws in Northern Ireland For the rest of the United Kingdom, laws about real money gambling online are pretty clear cut. In Northern Ireland though, they aren’t quite as clear. This is because there hasn’t been an update to Northern Irish gambling laws since the 1980s – way before online gambling rose to popularity. Even though Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom, the country is not governed by the Gaming Act of 1968 which is the law that brought legal gambling to Great Britain. Because Northern. Gambling and online casinos in Ireland So, it’s crystal clear that the Irish have a weak spot for games of luck, with a strong rise in its online variant. This is why so many gamblers from all over the world have embraced the exciting world of virtual gambling: A myriad of rewarding bonuses.

3.Societies’ lotteries (a lottery promoted by a society established for charitable, sporting, cultural etc purpose) but subject to very strict conditions.

The typical lottery or raffle organised by numerous groups across the country does not comply with any of the above exceptions and in reality, if groups did strictly comply with the legislation, they would never raise the level of money they aim to achieve with these draws.

You may ask why this draw in particular has been stopped when so many others have passed without issue over the years? I suspect that without any complaints being raised, police have no reason to look into such draws (or no interest) and it is only because complaints have been raised in this case that they have been duty-bound to investigate and have advised the organisers to cancel it to avoid risking prosecution.

The fact is that our gambling laws are outdated and simply do not cater for the many ideas and types of raffle, draw or event that are now quite prevalent. While all organisers should be aware of the restrictions in the legislation and the possibility of breaking the law, I imagine we have not yet seen the last of the knock on door by the volunteer ticket seller.

The Northern Ireland territory forms part of the United Kingdom, and it occupies about one-third of the island of Ireland. Belfast is the capital city of the tiny country with a population of nearly 1.9 million people, making it the second most sparsely populated nation of the UK. The total land area covers more than 14,130 km².
Northern Ireland, a constituent unit of the United Kingdom, is one of the 193 members of the United Nations. Religion continues to play an important role as more than 40 percent of the population attends church on a regular basis. Indeed, Northern Ireland is famous for the everlasting conflict between Protestants and Catholics, called ‘the Troubles’.
The remarkable stones at the Giant’s Causeway, the Glens of Antrim, the Carrickfergus Castle, and the Causeway Coast are some of Northern Ireland’s landmarks. Former Northern Irish winger George Best is among the five greatest football players ever, while Keith Gillespie is another famous winger from the ‘Norn Iron’.
The United Kingdom is a hotspot for all sorts of gambling, but there are no land-based casinos in Northern Ireland. At the same time, locals can enjoy sports betting at numerous outlets across the country, while lottery games are also legal. Additionally, brick and mortar sports betting shops also offer slot machines, which feature the random number generator (RNG).
Although there are no national online casinos, Northern Irish can freely enjoy games of luck at both UK-licensed and overseas gaming sites. Sports bettors have it good as they can choose from multiple national online bookmakers.

Best Northern Irish online casinos

All forms of gambling and sports betting have long had a place in Northern Irish culture. Indeed, the local sports betting industry contributes substantially to the economic activities, with more than 2,000 people employed in the bookmaking business.
The Northern Irish’s great love affair with gambling also reflects in the growing trend of online casinos, partly due to the lack of land-based gambling venues. These three exclusive gaming platforms offer players cartloads of exciting online casino games:

Popularity online casinos in Northern Ireland explained

The economy of Northern Ireland has shifted from heavy industry-based to services-oriented. Economists expect a modest growth of 1 percent for both 2017 and 2018, partly due to the Brexit uncertainty. In 2016, the Northern Irish economy expanded nearly 2 percent.
Investors consider the constituent unit of the UK as an interesting country because of multiple reasons, including:

• One of Europe’s youngest populations
• Northern Ireland is the most contented country of the UK
• Excellent education system
• Relatively low unemployment
• Belfast is a hotspot for financial services technologies
• Highly developed infrastructure

Additionally, Northern Ireland’s disposable income is effectively higher than in England, Scotland and Wales, a research demonstrated. Not to mention that Northern Ireland was reportedly the wealthiest UK country in 2014, according to the All-Island Research Observatory.
It won’t come as a surprise that the number of Northern Irish internet users is now much higher than ever before, according to a report by the British Office of Communications (Ofcom). A vast majority of the internet users (86%) noted that the world wide web is an essential aspect of their lives, which is reflected in the increasing ownership of tablets and smartphones. Therefore, it’s easy to see why virtual gambling and online betting continue to gain popularity in the ‘land of the giants’.

Gambling and online casinos in Northern Ireland

Both online casino games and sports betting are a massive hit due to multiple reasons. Let’s take a closer look at the main aspects that contribute to the success of gambling on the internet:

• All sorts of generous bonuses
• Cool promotions packed with awesome giveaways
• Multi-million pound cash prizes and jackpots
• Fun online casino games packed with great features
• Extremely generous rewards programs

How to deposit money in an online casino when I’m from Northern Ireland?

Northern Ireland Online Gambling Advice

The free-play mode is one of many cool features at online casinos, allowing players to enjoy the fun without the need to deposit money. However, if you want to rake in some cash, it’s necessary to play for real money. Fortunately, online gaming sites offer a variety of convenient and reputable deposit methods, such as these popular categories:

• Credit cards, e.g., Maestro, Visa, and MasterCard
• Electronic wallets, e.g., Skrill, and Neteller

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