According to The Irish Sun, Senator Kevin Humphreys has claimed in the Seanad that the National Lottery may have helped people “to defraud our tax system” and has urged Revenue to investigate.

The tax authority considers that only lotto winners are exempt from Capital Acquisitions Tax on any windfall, and that advice to retrospectively add family and friends to the claim could land National Lottery employees in the slammer.

“A person shall be liable, on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding €126,970 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years, or to both the fine and the imprisonment.”

When quizzed by the Irish Sun about the tax row, the National Lottery insisted that its claims procedure was “in accordance with our statutory and regulatory obligations”.

A spokesman added: “The National Lottery does not provide professional financial advice directly to our winners but recommends that they seek appropriate and independent advice.”