Casinos polarise opinion. They’re legal in parts of north America and Europe but mostly illegal in the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia – including Thailand. But that could be changing.
The legalisation of casinos is part of the Entertainment Complex bill in the Thai parliament. The draft bill states that a casino can take no more than 10% of an integrated complex that also includes components such as a hotel, a shoppingmall, an amusement park, bars and restaurants. These complexes must be in specific tourist zones such as Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket and Chiang Mai. For Thai nationals, access to the casino is heavily restricted, with possible requirements to pay a 5,000 baht entrance fee and prove bank deposits of up to 50 million baht. Earnings are subject to a 17% tax and there would be strict screening, monitoring and oversight to prevent crimes such as money laundering.
Advocates say these family-friendly complexes can significantly raise revenues from tourism spending, providing a new reason for visitors to enter the country. Thedisadvantages, opponents say, are a likely increase in crime and gambling addiction, and even general moral decay.
On this episode of Deeper Dive, Dave Kendall speaks with an expert in the field of building entertainment complexes with casinos in countries where they were previously illegal: Bo Bernhard, Vice President of Economic Development at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
