Prize fund limit for private lotteries should be abolished, claims Rehab

A Government proposal to increase the maximum prize fund limit for private lotteries from £10,000 to £15,000 a week has been described as "insignificant and irrelevant" by the head of Rehab Lotteries.

Mr John Maguire said the cap should be abolished entirely as it served only to protect the National Lottery's "monopoly" in the sector.

He was responding to the publication yesterday of the report of an Interdepartmental Group set up by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Mr O'Donoghue, to review the 1956 Gaming and Lotteries Act.

Mr O'Donoghue said he would be preparing a Bill which, when implemented, "would enable all gaming and lottery activities to be conducted within clear parameters".

He added that separate regulations would be introduced shortly, increasing the maximum prize fund for lotteries to £15,000 a week. However, Mr Maguire said the increase would "do nothing" for Rehab Lotteries. He noted that the largest weekly jackpot prize Rehab could offer under the current rules was £5,000, compared to £1 million for the National Lottery scratch cards.

"The bottom line is this restriction is preventing us from developing services for people with disabilities," he said.