Cabinet presentation of Entertainment Complex Bill postponed

The special committee overseeing Thailand's entertainment complex project said the Entertainment Complex Bill, originally due to be presented at the cabinet meeting on Tuesday, had its presentation postponed because the Ministry of Finance is receiving public feedback through its website until Friday¹. The committee also announced that Bangkok, Chon Buri, Chiang Mai and Phuket will be the first four locations for the complexes, amid public criticism¹.

Nikom Boonwiset, vice-chairman of the special committee and an MP of the ruling Pheu Thai Party, said the 500-billion-baht project is expected to attract at least 50 million visitors annually and create at least 40,000 employment positions¹. Each complex will feature a five-star hotel, a world-class shopping mall, an amusement park, a sports arena, a convention hall and a large exhibition center, with less than 10% of the space being allocated for a casino¹. Several international investors have already shown interest in the project, Mr Nikom said¹.

According to a source, there were growing concerns from protest groups who submitted letters of objection to Government House, and the ministry was expected to revise the draft and send it back to the cabinet after considering public opinion¹. Protesters rallied against the government's draft law in front of Government House on March 11².

Thanakorn Khomkrit, secretary-general of the Stop Gambling Foundation, criticized the current version of the bill for containing loopholes and lacking tight measures to prevent young people who gamble from developing a gambling habit¹. He said the bill contains ambiguity in terms of regulations and lacks clear stipulations on the number of casino facilities, the size and proportion of gambling spaces and frameworks on license fees and tax rates¹.

The foundation is concerned about whether the current definition of "other businesses" may lead to a loophole for money laundering through a brokerage company, aka the junket service¹.

What it means for players

Thailand has no legal casino entertainment complexes yet, and the bill that would create them has not reached the cabinet¹. The named provinces are the committee's initial plan, not operating venues, and no opening dates have been reported¹. The bill's provisions on license fees, tax rates, the number of casino facilities and the proportion of gambling space are not yet clearly stipulated, according to the Stop Gambling Foundation¹. For locals, expats and visitors in Thailand, the practical situation is unchanged for now: the gambling laws in Thailand and the wider gambling laws in Asia remain as they are until any bill passes and takes effect.

What happens next

The Ministry of Finance is receiving public feedback through its website until Friday¹. The ministry was expected to revise the draft and send it back to the cabinet after considering public opinion¹. No date for that cabinet presentation has been reported¹.