The Thai government has temporarily suspended a parliamentary debate on a bill that aims to legalise casinos in the country. The debate had been scheduled for today.
In an announcement cited by Thai media yesterday, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra explained that the government needed to address “more urgent matters,” including the 36 percent US tariffs on Thailand and the recovery efforts following the Myanmar-Thai earthquake late last month.
The first reading of the casino bill is now scheduled to take place during the next parliamentary session in July. If passed, the current version of the legislation would permit the establishment of five casinos across the kingdom in areas such as Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phuket.
In order to deter locals from using them, the government has put in place a number of barriers. Thai nationals will only be permitted to enter the gambling halls if they pay an entry fee of 5,000 baht (US$147) and have a bank account with at least 50 million baht (US$1.47 million).
[See more: Thailand’s cabinet has approved the latest draft of the kingdom’s casino bill]
Despite this, the bill has faced strong opposition from various sectors, including religious groups such as the Buddhist Association of Thailand. In an open letter cited by Thai PBS World last week, the group said that “Thailand should be a land of dharma, not a land of vice,” adding that the casinos would only be beneficial to overseas casino interests rather than locals.
The Thai prime minister, however, has doubled down on passing the bill, noting yesterday that “we will not withdraw it but we will continue to listen to all opinions.”
Paetongtarn added that casinos would only make up part of the planned entertainment complexes, which would also feature family-friendly leisure facilities. She pledged that casinos would not multiply throughout the kingdom, contrary to speculation.
In terms of benefits, the Thai government expects the opening up of local casinos to create 20,000 jobs and bring billions of baht to the economy.
