A bill to legalize casinos in Japan has stalled in the National Diet amid continued political opposition and may be postponed for consideration until next year.
Reports are that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s governing Liberal Democratic Party is struggling to obtain a parliamentary consensus for the bill, and the prime minister himself, the bill’s biggest backer, has been weakened by political scandal, which is making the negotiations more difficult.
Takeshi Iwaya, who heads the governing LDP’s pro-casino caucus in the Diet, told reporters he would “ensure progress” on the bill this year, according to Bloomberg.
But other members of the caucus have told Reuters the bill doesn’t have the votes to pass and will be shelved until the next regular session, which begins in January.
And the bill’s future will be problematic at that point as well, according to the same sources, because the 2015 session will be consumed with national defense, the budget, the Fukushima recovery and other big issues.
“If they can’t pass it now, I doubt whether they’ll ever be able to pass it,” one said.
The Diet adjourns for 2014 the end of this month.
Abe is promoting casinos as a way to help revive Japan’s ailing economy by boosting foreign tourism and investment. Most analyst believe the market could be the second-largest in the world, capable of generating upwards of US$15 in annual gaming revenue out of the gate from resorts in Tokyo and Osaka and a handful of outlying tourist regions. The prospects have attracted most of the largest casino operators in the world, all saying they’ll invest billions to win licenses.
However, polls show public support to be mixed at best, and Tokyo Gov. Yoichi Masuzoe, whose city is wrestling with the costs and logistical difficulties of preparing for the 2020 Summer Olympics, is not a supporter.
LDP’s junior coalition partner, Komeito, the political arm for influential Buddhist groups, has been outspoken in opposition to casinos, refusing to give in on members’ concerns about gambling addiction, crime and other potential social ills. The LDP controls the Diet’s lower House of Representatives, but Komeito’s support would be critical to getting the bill through the upper House of Councillors, where the LDP doesn’t have a majority on its own and the opposition Democratic Party of Japan is strong.
In the meantime, Abe has become a liability for the bill, his administration severely weakened, possibly permanently, by the recent resignations of his Trade and Industry and Justice ministers in connection with alleged campaign-funding illegalities.
