Japan’s legislative house is considering a bill that is aimed to make gambling at casinos legal in the country. The lawmakers for the country have decided to host parliamentary discussions to look over the possibility of legalizing gambling in the country so that casinos can be built and operated within city limits. Chair for the lower house cabinet committee, Masahiko Shibayama, stated that the bill is going to be looked over at a Wednesday meeting although the bill is not expected to be put up for passage until the autumn at the earliest. It will likely take this amount of time to get people on board and comfortable with the idea of legal gambling.
Deputy Secretary General Hiroyuki Hosoda of the Liberal Democratic Party submitted the bill which if approved is the first part of a two part bill that would eventually lead to gambling being legalized. At the moment gambling is banned in Japan. As the third largest economy in the world, the legalization of gambling would potentially bring a great deal of money into the country via taxes and tourism. If the bill is passed then the government will have to take more steps over the course of the year to prepare the gambling industry to be introduced into the market.
Proponents of gambling Japan have been working on legalizing the practice for the last decade and they see the discussions on Wednesday as a huge step forward. Although there have been many mentions of allowing casinos to come into Japan over the past few years the frequent change of administration and ruling parties as well as other more pressing bills have overshadowed any movement. Toru Mihara stated that this is the first step but they need to stay active to make sure that the movement continues to gain momentum so that it can move forward.
If Japan were to legalize gambling it could easily become one of the largest markets for gambling in the world. The Brokerage CLSA firm has taken a look at the economy and potential for gambling revenue in the country and predicted it could reach as high as $40 billion. To put the number into perspective, it would measure almost six times what Las Vegas took in last year. Annually Vegas casinos on the strip make a combined revenue of a little over six billion.
In addition, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is hoping that legalizing gambling will help promote the country as a top tourism destination to help increase the amount of foreign travelers. The economy has been stagnant in Japan for the last decade and an increase in tourism via integrated resorts would greatly boost the growth strategy of Japan. The casino industry will likely be watching Japan to see if and when the potential to expand into the country arrives.