A contentious law to legalize gambling in specific “entertainment complexes” in an effort to increase tourism and generate employment was approved by Thailand’s cabinet on Monday.
The proposed law would permit the establishment of casinos in tourist complexes that also include hotels, shopping centers, theme parks, and water parks.
Although illegal betting is common in Thailand, gambling is now only permitted on a few state-run horse races and an official lottery.
According to Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, “the objectives are to increase revenue, support investment in Thailand, and solve illegal gambling,” with media.
The bill will go to the Office of the Council of State for drafting before being debated and voted on by lawmakers in parliament — a process that will likely take months.
Since the end of the Covid-19 pandemic, which hammered Thailand’s crucial tourism industry, the kingdom has launched numerous strategies to lure more visitors, such as cutting visa requirements for Chinese and Indian travellers.
Deputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat said the government hopes the entertainment complexes will ultimately boost tourist numbers by 5-10 percent and create up to 15,000 new jobs.
The location for the proposed complexes, and the timetable for their construction, have not been announced.
Conservative forces in Buddhist-majority Thailand have long resisted moves to legalise gambling, even as shady casino complexes have sprung up in neighbouring Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar.
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime warned in a report last year that Southeast Asia’s casinos were “foundational pieces of the banking architecture used by organised crime” to launder massive volumes of money.
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