Friday, 1 November 2013 03:35
-
- {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Contrary to media reports, the new gazettes on the gaming industry hadn’t come up for discussion at the Cabinet meeting presided over by President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Media Minister and Cabinet Spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella told journalists yesterday the Cabinet didn’t take up the matter when they met this week.
At the centre of Sri Lanka’s attempt to open up the country to the lucrative casino industry are massive tax concessions proposed for a US$ 350 million casino backed by Australian gaming mogul James Packer.
After several rounds of discussions the Sri Lankan Government decided to postpone Parliamentary approval for Packer’s casino deal last week after refusal from coalition parties to support it.
However, local media had reported that the amended gazette notifications that detail tax concessions and operational measures for the casino would be presented to the Cabinet for approval on Thursday.
Investment Promotion Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardene had earlier acknowledged to media that religious political parties such as the Buddhist Jathika Hela Urumaya and Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), which are part of the ruling coalition, had refused to support casino ventures.
A protest was organised by the SLMC against the casino in Colombo ahead of the Parliament debate last week.
“We encourage proposals from party leaders on a way forward. There are many concerns that local people will get into the bad habit of gaming so the morality of casinos is the main reason for this disapproval,” Abeywardene told reporters at the post-Cabinet briefing.
He added that parties could suggest ways to discourage local people from gambling, providing examples of measures in Singapore where locals have to pay US$ 200 extra and obtain spousal approval.
However, he ruled out banning locals from gaming altogether in the majority Buddhist nation.
Another aspect that is being reconsidered is a clarification on taxation for the new venture.
Abeywardene noted that the Government hopes to tax 5% of total revenue rather than from gaming profits, pointing out that the former is far more lucrative for the State.
Nonetheless, this is unlikely to reduce disapproval from the main opposition United National Party (UNP), which has criticised a 12-year tax holiday handed out by the Government to Packer.
The Australian Financial Review earlier this month estimated that the tax concessions would amount to as much as US$ 1 billion over a 10-year period.
The UNP argues this money could be used to reduce cost of living and bring development to a nation ravaged by a near three-decade war, which ended in 2009. They also argue that casinos are not properly regulated in the country, creating the space for massive corruption.
Abeywardene is confident that a fresh Bill can be tabled in Parliament within one month and is upbeat of more investment from Packer.
“He has expressed interest in investing in follow-up projects but the Sri Lankan Government is very clear that this will be the only casino he will get,” the Minister added.
Packer’s venture will be the first large-scale casino is Sri Lanka though smaller establishments have existed for years.
Two other gaming ventures from local companies totalling over US$ 1 billion in investment have also been proposed.
