Wexford Councillors Seek Powers to Curb Spread of Town-Centre Casinos

^{Councillors have linked the spread of casino-style premises to protecting the architectural heritage of Wexford's town centre. (Photo: Thommcg / Wikimedia Commons)}

Councillors in Wexford have called for stronger powers to slow the spread of casino-style gaming premises in the town centre, after operators overturned local planning refusals on appeal. The issue was raised at the July meeting of Wexford County Council, where members questioned what options remain once An Coimisiún Pleanála grants permission the council has already refused.

The debate comes as Ireland beds in its first dedicated gambling regime under the Gambling Regulation Act 2024, which created a single national regulator. That framework governs how gambling is licensed and advertised, but the physical spread of premises on a high street still turns on planning law, which leaves councils with limited room to act.

Speaking at the meeting, Councillor Vicky Barron said a cluster of such premises in Wexford town was not sending the right message, particularly for people dealing with gambling problems, describing them as 'not what we want to see in our town centre'. She asked whether the council could seek a judicial review when appeals reverse its planning decisions.

The council's director of planning, Liz Hore, said there was little the authority could do once An Coimisiún Pleanála had ruled, because any applicant is entitled to appeal a refusal. She said the process was fixed, but suggested councillors could strengthen the wording of the next Local Area Plan to better protect the architectural heritage of urban spaces.

The tension is not unique to Wexford. An Coimisiún Pleanála is the national body that decides planning appeals, and its rulings are binding on local authorities. That leaves the development plan, rather than a case-by-case refusal, as the main tool a council has to shape what opens on its high streets.

Ireland's Shifting Gambling Regulation

The premises at the centre of the debate also sit in a shifting legal landscape. For decades, gaming in Ireland was governed by the Gaming and Lotteries Act 1956, under which many venues operated as private members' clubs rather than licensed casinos. Oversight of gambling now sits with the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, established in March 2025, which licenses and supervises operators and can impose penalties of up to €20 million or 10% of turnover.

The regulator has also begun addressing gambling harm directly, opening a public consultation on a social impact fund to help pay for treatment, education and research. Councillors raised similar concerns in Wexford, linking the visibility of gaming premises to the needs of people already struggling with gambling.

The Scale of Problem Gambling in Ireland

The wider evidence gives that argument weight. The Economic and Social Research Institute has estimated that about 3.3% of adults, roughly 130,000 people, meet the threshold for problem gambling, a rate around ten times higher than earlier surveys had suggested. The figure is set out in the ESRI's research on gambling behaviour.

For now, the practical lever available to councillors is the planning system rather than gambling law. Attention turns to whether Wexford's next Local Area Plan introduces specific protections for the town centre, and to how the regulator's licensing regime, detailed on the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland website, settles alongside decisions made by local authorities and An Coimisiún Pleanála.