The governing council of Bratislava has bucked the city’s mayor by voting down his proposal for a total ban on gambling in the Slovakian capital.
Likening the city’s situation to Vienna and Budapest, where casinos thrive in tourist hotels, 17 councillors issued a statement last week calling for strict regulation instead of prohibition:
“We want gambling operations to be closed down wherever people in residential areas and boroughs don’t want them. But we also realize that, contrary to what some activists and politicians have been saying, gambling won’t disappear simply by being banned.”
The picturesque Danube city of 450,000 is home to a flourishing gaming market comprised of more than 200 locations, 500-plus casino-style slot machines and more than 2,000 other machine games.
Mayor Ivo Nesrovnal wants it shut down and has vowed to continue to push for a ban in line with a petition signed in January by more than 130,000 residents favoring it. Interestingly enough, 45 councillors also signed the petition. But when it came to a vote in the council earlier this month, the ban was defeated in a split decision, with 24 voting yes and 12 abstaining. A two-thirds majority was needed to pass it.
Councillors now say they will look to hold an extraordinary session to consider new, tougher regulations. They say they’ll revisit prohibition but won’t schedule a vote on it before next year.
