Thailand Delays Plan to Legalize Casino After Political Turmoil
(Bloomberg) — Thailand’s ruling coalition will delay the introduction of a controversial bill to legalize casinos after its parliamentary majority was reduced with the exit of a key ally last week.
The so-called “entertainment complex” bill was set to be the first major agenda when the House of Representatives reconvenes next month. Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s administration was forced to delay the bill once earlier due to mounting opposition from religious groups, anti-gambling networks and some political parties.
The delay will provide more time for the government to communicate with the public and address their concerns, Manaporn Charoensri, a deputy transport minister and cabinet whip, said on Wednesday. It’s not clear when government lawmakers plan to put the bill back on the house agenda.
The move came after the ruling alliance was pushed to the brink by the exit of Bhumjaithai Party, which has vowed to oppose the bill. Paetongtarn is under fire for a leaked phone conversation with former Cambodian leader Hun Sen, in which she was critical of the Thai army’s role in an ongoing border standoff with the neighboring country.
Without a clear majority, the government may face challenges in passing controversial or essential bills that have been lined up in the coming months. The budget bill for next fiscal year from October is also expected to be taken up for the second and third readings in August.
The exit of pro-cannabis Bhumjaithai also allowed Paetongtarn’s ruling Pheu Thai party to move to re-criminalize the plant as narcotics, just three years after allowing its free use.
READ: Thailand to Criminalize Non-Medical Weed After Coalition Rupture
The entertainment complex bill is a flagship Pheu Thai proposal and was endorsed by the cabinet in March. Setting up of integrated resorts can boost foreign tourist arrivals by 5% to 20% and lift average spending per person per trip by about 22,000 baht, the party has said.
But critics of the casino plan have argued the gaming venues will fuel gambling addiction and benefit big businesses and foreign companies. They also cite risks of inviting casinos into the country at a time when transnational crime syndicates have turned casino towns in neighboring countries into cyber scam dens and hubs for money laundering and drug trafficking.
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