Westport-Belmullet Municipal District have designated a post office and shop in Erris to apply for a gambling license following a contentious vote at their monthly meeting.
The casting vote of Sean Carey, Cathaoirleach of the municipal district, and the abstention of Cllr John O’Malley, gave permission for Carrowteige Post Office & Shop to apply to the courts for a license for a gambling machine on their premises.
The matter required approval from the municipal district under Part 111 of the Gaming and Lotteries Act 1956.
One submission on the matter was received by May 17, from Westport-based county councillor Christy Hyland, citing concerns over the negative impact that gambling can inflict.
The former garda said: “I have personal experience of when I was in the force of the misery…where parents’ hearts are broke, where young teenagers get addicted to the machine, using all their pocket money.
“If we adopt that [motion], what kind of a message are we sending out? Does that mean that in a month or six months’ time someone else will be coming in dealing with applications to have arcades in our town, which I’d be totally opposed to. I think it’s wrong, very wrong.”
The Independent councillor questioned how much extra footfall it would generate for the shop given the ‘very sparse population’ of the area.
“It baffles me why the survival of a shop is dependent on a one-arm-bandit,” he commented.
Westport-based Independent county councillor Christy Hyland (Pic: Michael McLaughlin)
According to the 2022 Census, the two ‘small areas’ closest to Carrowteige village had a population of 163.
Cllr Gerry Coyle, who proposed the motion, said that the closure of the shop would force locals to travel 40 miles ‘for a litre of milk’.
Cllrs Brendan Mulroy and Peter Flynn voiced similar concerns as Cllr Hyland regarding the machine.
Catherine McConnell, Director of Services for the Westport-Belmullet Municipal District, said there was no provision for the council executive to make any formal recommendation on the matter but said they would have no objection.
The matter has been rejected by elected members when it appeared before the municipal district on previous occasions.
Cllr Hyland and Cllr Mulroy expressed disappointment that the executive member of the council did not oppose the motion.
“I too, know people who have huge gambling issues – addictions. Believe me, it creates havoc, it ruins people’s lives’,” said Cllr Mulroy.
Cllr Flynn also voiced concerns about the impact of gambling, which he described as ‘a silent disease.
“Cllr Coyle is right, the phone is available, people can do all the online gambling at night, but we’re not sanctioning it here. That’s the difference.”
Ms McConnell clarified that the matter was being brought before the municipal district council as the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland had not yet been established.
When established, the new state body will have powers to regulate gambling in Ireland and will aim to raise awareness around the issue.
Ms McConnell explained that the gardaí will have the opportunity to object to the granting of the license after person seeking to operate the gambling machine presents in court.
She added that the council does not formally object to people selling lotto tickets or betting office.
“My understanding is that this facility has been operating for in excess of 20 years with no gardaí even objecting to it. This is a formality that had been overlooked in the process at some point in time,” she said.
Addressing the meeting online, Cllr Coyle said that the person operating the facility presented at court every year before a judge discovered that it had not been formally designated.
The Fine Gael councillor said that the shop was providing a ‘lifeline’ to people in the community.
“We are not giving a license to this place,” said the Geesala-based councillor, who said the facility was operating ‘two tiny machines’ in a room ‘the length of a radiator’.
“There’s not a one-arm bandit now, there’s a one finger-bandit and it’s stuck in your pocket there now. That’s called a phone, and that’s where people are gambling.”
Cllr John O’Malley (Independent), who previously opposed approving the license, abstained on the vote on the grounds that it was not in his area.
Cllr Hyland alleged that Cllr O’Malley was ‘got at’ for altering his stance on the matter after previously voicing concern over the effects of gambling.
“It’s a unique situation, it’s not in may area, it’s in a very rural area, and as far as I am concerned, I am abstaining,” said Cllr O’Malley.
“There’s no people down there for it to cause misery to,” he added.
Cllr Brendan Mulroy (Fianna Fáil), Cllr Peter Flynn (Fine Gael) and Cllr Christy Hyland (Independent) voted against granting approval while Cllr Gerry Coyle (Fine Gael), Cllr Paul McNamara (Fianna Fáil) and Cllr Seán Carey (Fianna Fáil) voted in favour.
Cllr O’Malley’s abstention resulted in a even split of councillors for and against the motion, which was then passed by Cllr Carey’s casting vote.