Irish bookmakers BoyleSports has decided the result of the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland is a foregone conclusion by paying out to punters who stumped on a “Yes” vote for the October 2 referendum.
Despite being two weeks away from polling, and the country having already rejected the Treaty last time out, the bookies feel that this time the result will be positive.
"With odds at 1/12 a positive outcome looks like a foregone conclusion at this stage although we do expect it to be tight," said Leon Blanche, a spokesman for Boylesports.
"With many crucial groups in the country such as farmers and business leaders supporting the treaty we believe that this result is now inevitable," he added.
While Leon is confident that it will all work out for his company, other top Irish bookmaker Paddy Power has not jumped on the bandwagon yet, and will wait until the polls are tallied before paying out on “Yes” bets.
In fact Paddy Power does not want to deter voters from exercising their democratic right.
"It's such an important treaty. We don't want to give people a reason not to go and vote," he said. It is believed that one of his punters is so sure of a yes vote that he bet €32,000 ($47,000).
Power expects he might be on the losing end of this wager. "We fully expect to be lining the pockets of all the Yes men next week."
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