BANGKOK, Feb 12 — Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has defended her government’s casino-entertainment complex project despite warnings from Chinese President Xi Jinping about potential social risks.
During her official visit to China last week, Paetongtarn discussed the controversial casino proposal with Xi who expressed concern that legalising casinos could lead to an increase in criminal activity in Thailand, The Bangkok Post reported today.
Paetongtarn explained that the project would involve an integrated complex with hotels, restaurants, and entertainment, with a casino taking up less than 10 per cent of the space and that a thorough study is being carried out on the project before any approval is given.
“We have to admit that some illegal gambling dens are still operating in the country. The money changing hands in those gambling dens does not benefit the country. If they are legalised, revenue can be collected from them and used for national development projects,” she was quoted as saying.
The casino proposal is part of the Pheu Thai-led government’s policy, which was first outlined by Paetongtarn in Parliament in September 2023.
Pheu Thai argues that legalising casinos would reduce the influence of underground gambling activities and allow the government to regulate them and generate revenue for national development.
On January 13, the Thai Cabinet approved a Bill in principle to pave the way for the establishment of casino complexes.
The Bill is currently under review by the Council of State, which has 50 days to complete revisions before it is forwarded to the House for deliberation.
Pakorn Nilprapunt, secretary-general of the Council of State, stated that the council is working to fine-tune the bill, with the revised version expected by early March.
The Thai government insists no referendum is needed, arguing that the policy was already approved by parliament, and Pheu Thai campaigned on the issue.
However, a civil network has launched a signature collection campaign to push for a referendum on the casino project.
Thanakorn Komkris, secretary-general of the Stop Gambling Foundation, stated that the network aims to gather at least 50,000 signatures.
Under the proposed bill, entertainment complexes would require a licence valid for up to 30 years, with a 5 billion baht registration fee and annual payments of 1 billion baht.
Operators would also be required to pay an entrance fee for Thai visitors, and people under 20 would be prohibited from entering the complexes.
