One of the parties in Thailand’s current coalition government has added its voice to the opposition Democrat Party, with concerns about the social and economic value of legalising casino resort business in the kingdom.
The country’s Ministry of Finance has reportedly finished the draft of a piece of casino-related legalisation known as the Entertainment Complex Bill. The draft is now undergoing a public consultation until August 18.
The Bangkok Post reported on Wednesday that government coaltion member the Bhumjaithai Party, had doubts on the matter.
It cited Chaichanok Chidchob, party secretary-general, stating it had several grounds for disagreement with the terms of the bill, including whether legalisation would really help curb existing unauthorised gambling, as claimed by the now-dismissed prime minister, Srettha Thavisin, and others.
The Bhumjaithai Party also suggested Thailand already had an “abundance” of attractions for tourists, without needing casinos. The party additionally questioned if such an industry would really create employment for locals.
The Bangkok Post also cited Chaichana Detdecho, deputy secretary-general of the Democrat Party, expressing its specific opposition to casinos, doubting whether the economic potential of such facilities – if set up in Thailand – could match the economic contribution of casino resorts in either Macau, Vietnam, or Singapore.
That party’s official suggested Thailand’s government should look at alternatives such as legalising and taxing lotteries business.
The news outlet also referred to social media commentary by the Democrat Party’s deputy leader, Suchatvee Suwansawat, expressing worries Thai locals would be targeted as gambling patrons, and whether the authorities in the country would be able to have effective control over “severe” crimes, that he said might be associated with a casino sector, particularly money-laundering.
As per a Monday report in the Bangkok Post, under the terms of the legalisation framework, locals will have to pay an entrance fee of THB5,000 (about US$143) though the report didn’t clarify whether such fee was on a per-visit basis.
According to the draft bill, Thailand’s prime minister, a deputy prime minister and five ministers, will sit on what it termed a “Policy Committee” to steer the country’s casino policy effort. The high-powered committee’s scope of authority includes determining the number of licences for the casino entertainment complexes, and the areas for operating them, as well as recommending the tax rates for casino businesses.
The Policy Committee can also determine the ratio of Thai to foreign employees hired by casinos, noted the Thailand-based law firm Chandler MHM Limited in a recent memo on the draft bill.
(Updated 5.30pm, August 14)
