Betting Act, 1931

Powers of the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs.

34.—(1) The Minister for Posts and Telegraphs may detain any postal packet suspected of containing a communication to which this section applies and shall forward every postal packet so detained to the Revenue Commissioners and those Commissioners may open and examine the packet, and if they find therein any communication to which this section applies may detain the packet and its contents for the purpose of prosecution, and if they find no such communication therein shall close the packet and return the same to the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs who shall forward the packet and its contents by post to the person to whom it was addressed.

(2) Whenever the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs receives for transmission by telegraph a message which appears to be a communication to which this section applies, he may send to the Revenue Commissioners a copy of such message and such information in regard thereto as he shall think fit to send or the Revenue Commissioners may ask for.

(3) The Minister for Posts and Telegraphs may after consultation with the Revenue Commissioners make regulations for the exercise of the powers and the performance of the duties conferred or imposed on him by this section.

(4) This section applies to every communication from a person in Saorstát Éireann (hereinafter called the sender) to a person outside Saorstát Éireann (hereinafter called the addressee) by which the sender purports either on his own behalf or on behalf of another person to make or enter into a bet with the addressee or by which the sender purports to employ, commission, or instruct the addressee to make or enter into a bet for or on behalf of the sender or any other person.

(5) This section in so far as it relates to postal packets shall be read and construed together with the Post Office Acts, 1908 to 1920, and in so far as it relates to telegrams shall be read and construed as one with the Telegraph Acts, 1863 to 1928.