立法
Japan – Japanese casino discussions underway
By 菲尔 - 18 年 2014 月 XNUMX 日
The opening parliamentary debate on a bill to introduce resort casinos is now underway in Japan.
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party wants casinos as part of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s aim of increasing economic growth by doubling the number of foreign tourists visiting Japan to over 20m by 2020.
Hiroyuki Hosoda, the ruling party lawmaker sponsoring the bill, said: “The intention is to increase competitiveness and enhance the attractiveness of our tourist destinations.”
Masahiko Shibayama, of the lower house’s cabinet committee, said the passing the bill would likely be postponed until at least autumn.
The bill is the first part of a two-stage process. After it has been passed the government will piece together legislation within a year to legalise resort casinos.
Toru Mihara, an adviser to politicians, said: “We have to remind ourselves that this is just the start, and until we see gambling become legal, we must keep up our efforts.”
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said: “Integrated resorts will be a main feature of my growth strategy.”
日本吸引了大多数最大的国际赌场运营商的兴趣。我认为综合度假村将成为日本经济增长战略的重要组成部分。我希望他们能够从需要采取哪些措施来增强日本的吸引力以及如何吸引人们来访的问题上进行深思熟虑。”
MGM Resorts Chief Executive Jim Murren said: “As an ex-Wall Street guy, it’s all about deal momentum.
When you lose the deal momentum, sometimes you lose the deal.”
Not everyone is pro casino though. Tokyo’s Governor, Yoichi Masuzoe, said: “There are pros and cons. Many women in Tokyo are against the creation of casinos and they think about the bad influences of casinos. There hasn’t been enough debate, including about money laundering and other things.”
