Efforts to legalize casinos in Thailand hit a roadblock this week when a bill allowing for casino resorts failed to pass in the senate.
Legislators had taken several steps toward casino legalization this year, and on the poker front worked to recognize poker tournaments as a sport while seeing the World Poker Tour host a WPT Prime event in the country. However, a new prime minister opposed to gambling appears to have brought those plans to a halt.
The casino bill was introduced by former prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, but a special senate committee rejected the plan. Senators cited concerns about money laundering, gambling addictions, and other perceived social ills in nixing the bill, according to the Bangkok Post.
“The casino is not a side feature – it’s the core of the proposal,” Senator Chinachot Saengsang said. “If the new government includes casino legalization in its policy platform, it risks undermining public confidence and long-term governance.”
Vocal Opponents Stop Momentum
New Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul was sworn in earlier this month and has been a vocal opponent of legalizing casinos. Another obstacle is the dissolution of parliament, which is set to take place in four months.
In proposing the legislation, Shinawatra said that the addition of the gaming industry offered the chance for a boost in tourism. He also believed the bill could also bring new jobs and investment.
“Legalization will protect the public and would also generate more state revenue,” Shinawatra said.
In voting down the proposal, some senators recommended forming a new study group to look further at the issue. Senator Sornchat Vichaya Suwannaprom, vice chair of the committee, said that could include alternatives like entertainment complexes without casinos, special casino zones, and possibly regulated online gaming in Thailand.
Some senators favored allowing casinos that would only be available to tourists, as seen in some Asian countries like South Korea and neihboring Myanmar.
However, others like Sen. Sitthikorn Thongyos believed the government had already encroached too closely to full-scale gambling legalization by reclassifying poker and promoting retirement lotteries.
Gambling is officially illegal in Thailand outside of the government-run lottery and horse racing, but underground gambling is still prevalent, according to reports. Legal casinos are also open just across the border in Malaysia, Laos, and Cambodia.
