A Sri Lanka bill to set up a Gambling Regulatory Authority has passed a hurdle on the way to becoming law, after being given approval by the parliament’s Committee on Public Finance. That is according to a Thursday announcement by the legislature.
It would set up the Gambling Regulatory Authority as an independent regulatory body with a “broad scope to standardise betting and gaming establishments in Sri Lanka, minimise social harm, develop the tourism sector and grow the economy,” said the announcement.
The committee’s support for the bill was agreed on Tuesday, and made public on Thursday, as per the update.
A draft of the bill had been gazetted in May under the directive of the country’s leader, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, in his capacity as minister of finance, planning and economic development.
The regulator will be tasked with collecting gambling-related tax revenue, ensuring “transparency and good governance” in gambling operations, and preventing illegal gambling activities, among other duties, according to the bill.
At the start of this month, Sri Lanka opened its first-large scale integrated resort with casino, in the country’s capital, Colombo, eyeing in particular, tourists from neighbouring India.
City of Dreams Sri Lanka is a venture between global casino operator Melco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd, and local developer, John Keells Group Plc.
