Will the Irish government fold on gambling crackdowns?

There was a point for Pat Sheedy when the only restrictions on his gambling were the hours in the day.

“I was in bed at four in the morning with an iPad, two phones and a laptop all on the go,” he said. “I was gambling on ridiculous events that I knew nothing about in all parts of the world.”

Sheedy, 55, a former marketing executive from Limerick, placed his first bet at the age of 12. The addiction which followed would lead to nearly 100 criminal convictions, €1.5 million squandered and a stint in prison.

Over 40 years he relapsed on two occasions — each time the industry had changed. “Back in the day you could bet on horseracing and greyhounds, then maybe it