Osaka City Council votes to proceed with IR plan

Osaka City Council has voted in favour of a resolution to proceed with the city’s IR policy.

Japan.- Members of the city council of Osaka voted on Friday (June 9) on a resolution to move forward with the Osaka IR District Development Plan. The decision aims to clarify the stance of the city council’s elected representatives regarding the IR policy.

The resolution received support from Osaka Innovation, the leading political group in the council, as well as Komeito and a major faction of the local Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). However, another section of the local LDP and the Japanese Communist Party opposed the resolution. 

According to GGRAsia, the main LDP bloc shifted in its stance to support the project after a local election held on April 9. This would appear to fit the party stance at the national level, as successive LDP-led coalition governments have backed the liberalisation of casinos.

In April, national authorities gave their initial approval to Osaka’s IR District Development Plan. The project is worth JPY1.08tn (US$8.38bn) and is backed by a consortium that includes MGM Resorts International and Orix. MGM Resorts CEO Bill Hornbuckle confirmed that construction is slated to commence late this year or early in 2024, with the resort to open in the first half of 2030 – a slight delay from the previously targeted 2029 launch.

In May, Osaka’s governor Hirofumi Yoshimura expressed confidence that the delay in approving Japan’s first casino resort project won’t hamper its success.