Former Thai PM reaffirms opposition to casino bill
The Senate committee reviewing the bill to legalise casino resorts invited Abhisit Vejjajiva to express his opinion.
Thailand.- Former prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has strongly criticised the government’s bill to legalise casino resorts. Speaking before the Senate committee reviewing the bill, Vejjajiva said the legalisation of entertainment complexes with casinos wouldn’t stop illegal gambling and could harm the country’s image.
The Bangkok Post quoted him saying: “The idea that legal casinos can clean up illegal gambling is flawed. Look at government lotteries; they exist with illegal ones.” He also questioned comparisons to Singapore, arguing that Thailand’s tourism appeal doesn’t rely on gambling.
He suggested that while casinos would generate income for the state, reports indicate that only about 20 per cent would come from foreigners, with 80 per cent from Thai citizens. He argued that the tax the government could collect would likely be less than what could come from non-casino-related sectors as tax rates would have to be competitive with other countries.
The government predicts that entertainment complexes with casinos could generate between THB12.04bn (US$353m) and THB39.25bn (US$1.15bn) a year for the state, including taxes from hotels and theme parks. Deputy finance minister Julapun Amornvivat has said that integrated resorts (IR) could boost Thailand’s gross domestic product (GDP) by 0.8 per cent annually.
The government will discuss the casino bill in the next parliamentary session, which starts on July 2.
