Anti-poverty campaigners have criticised the National Lottery for introducing a €10 scratchcard for the Christmas market.
The Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP) said yesterday the National Lottery was behaving "irresponsibly" by creating an expensive gambling product which people on low incomes were statistically much more likely to buy.
Prof John Monaghan of the SVP said: "The cost of just one of these scratchcards is a significant lump out of the income of any person at risk of poverty. If you're on the lowest level of social welfare, which is around €185 a week, then €10 is a hell of a lot."
He said people were entitled to spend their money as they please. However, he said it was irresponsible of the National Lottery to introduce such an expensive scratchcard.
"I'd have thought the National Lottery would have been a bit more sensitive about this, especially if poorer people view it as a chance to solve their financial problems at Christmas time.
"We're concerned about it," Prof Monaghan said.
Numerous studies show that people categorised as lower-middle class, skilled working class and unemployed are over-represented among regular lottery participants.
The "Christmas Countdown" scratchcard offers an instant prize of between €3 and €100,000.