Betting (Amendment) Act 2015

Issue of certificates of personal fitness to certain persons ordinarily resident in State

7. The Principal Act is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 4:

“4. (1) Upon compliance with subsection (3), an individual who ordinarily resides in the State may apply for a certificate (in this Act referred to as a ‘certificate of personal fitness’) that he is a fit and proper person to hold a bookmaker’s licence—

(a) to the Superintendent of the Garda Síochána for the district in which he ordinarily resides, or

(b) in a case where the individual carries on or proposes to carry on the business of bookmaker from a particular premises, to the Superintendent of the Garda Síochána for the district in which the premises is located or is proposed to be located.

(2) Upon compliance with subsection (3), an individual who ordinarily resides in the State may apply for a certificate (in this Act referred to as a ‘certificate of personal fitness’) that he is a fit and proper person to be a relevant officer of a body corporate that holds a bookmaker’s licence—

(a) to the Superintendent of the Garda Síochána for the district in which the body corporate is ordinarily resident, or

(b) in a case where the body corporate carries on or proposes to carry on the business of bookmaker from a particular premises, to the Superintendent of the Garda Síochána for the district in which the premises is located or is proposed to be located.

(3) An individual (including a relevant officer of a body corporate) intending to apply for a certificate of personal fitness under this section shall, not later than 14 days and not earlier than one month before making the application, publish, in two daily newspapers circulating in the State, a notice in such form as may be specified by the Minister for Justice and Equality of his intention to make the application.

(4) An application for a certificate of personal fitness under this section shall be in such form as may be specified by the Minister for Justice and Equality.

(5) The applicant for a certificate of personal fitness shall provide the Superintendent of the Garda Síochána to whom the application concerned is made with all such information (including information relating to the applicant’s financial circumstances) as that Superintendent may reasonably require for the purposes of the performance of his functions under this section.

(6) A Superintendent of the Garda Síochána to whom an application for a certificate of personal fitness is duly made under this section shall, not later than 56 days after receiving the application, either—

(a) grant the application and issue a certificate of personal fitness to the applicant, or

(b) refuse the application.

(7) A Superintendent of the Garda Síochána shall not refuse an application for a certificate of personal fitness under this section unless—

(a) he is satisfied that by reason of the financial circumstances of, or the existence of a relevant consideration in relation to, the applicant for the certificate, the applicant is not a fit and proper person to hold a bookmaker’s licence or to be a relevant officer of a body corporate that holds a bookmaker’s licence, or

(b) the applicant fails or refuses to comply with a requirement to which subsection (5) applies.

(8) A certificate of personal fitness under this section shall be in such form as may be specified by the Minister for Justice and Equality.

(9) An individual who, in applying for a certificate of personal fitness under this section, knowingly makes a statement or provides information to a Superintendent of the Garda Síochána that is false or misleading in a material respect shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable—

(a) on summary conviction to a class A fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or both, or

(b) on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding €50,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or both.

(10) A Superintendent of the Garda Síochána shall, as soon as may be after making a decision in relation to an application for a certificate of personal fitness, notify the Revenue Commissioners in writing of that decision.”.