Insight BRAZIL Market Update
According to the minster the government would only permit gaming in a handful of large integrated large scale resorts along the lines of Singapore. Money generated by the industry would be destined for education, health and social welfare programmes. According to Beltrão he is already negotiating the issue with the executive branch and already has a forecast for the announcement of the measures for some point in the first half of this year. Indeed according to Uruguay's Tourism Minister Liliam Kechichian, who met with Beltrão earlier this year, Beltrão told her that Brazil would pass a gaming law at some point.
According to Beltrão’s project six licences could be granted immediately in the states of Rio and São Paulo, and another four in the south, midwest, north and northeast regions. Twenty licences could be granted permission to operate in all.
In addition the tourism industry remains fully behind new plans to allow for large scale casinos. In April the Joint Parliamentary Front in Defence of Tourism (FRENTUR) stated that gambling legalisation was one of the priorities for 2017. Made up of 250 deputies and senators, FRENTUR aims to improve legislation in the tourism industry in order to generate income and jobs.
Te process of passing gaming law could also be speeded up via developments outside of the tourism industry and the national government entirely. According to the Brazilian Legal Gaming Institute (Instituto de Jogo Legal – IJL) events in the state of Rio Grande do Sul could
P44 NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE /
247.COM
put pressure on the government to address the issue as a matter of more urgency. In January a number of bingo halls in Porto Alegre, the capital of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, reopened after local magistrates ruled in their favour. Magistrates for Te Criminals Appeals Panel ruled that gaming does not constitute a criminal offense because the 1941 law, which outlawed gambling as part of Brazil’s Criminal Contravention Act, violates principles laid out in the 1988 Constitution. Te Brazilian constitution was rewritten in 1988 after civilian rule returned to Brazil after more than two decades of military government.
In addition local bingo hall owners are hoping that the provisional measures passed in 2004 which banned bingo halls have expired. Operators believe that combined the situation could amount to a legal limbo in which they may operate and a small number of bingo halls have reopened for business. Tis legal dispute highlights perfectly the need for Brazil to address the issue and update its gaming laws and could well put pressure on the government to make changes to Brazil’s antiquated gaming laws.
Meanwhile industry lobby groups are working behind the scenes in order to help bring acts now under consideration in Congress to fruition. In March members of the board of the Gaming Institute (IJL) met with members of both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate for number of hearings. In the Senate, the Gaming Institute is hoping that key members on the CCJ committee are pro gaming legalisation so that the bill has the best chances of passing through
the committee stage. In the Chamber of Deputies members of the IJL met with lawmakers who are sympathetic to the legalisation of gaming, in order to mobilize the Board of Directors for consideration and to vote on the merits of the bill. Members also met with Deputy Magda Mofatto a long time supporter of the gaming bill. Te lawmaker later defended the new bill on television and said that that the liberation of gambling in Brazil would only bring benefits to the economy.
However despite a number of positive developments, for years gaming in Brazil has been a highly charged political issue. Te liberalisation of gaming still faces considerable opposition from Federal Police and the Public Prosecutor’s office who believe that it would encourage money laundering and tax evasion in Brazil as the sheer size of the industry would overwhelm the capacity of supervisory bodies. Meanwhile opposition to the new act amongst church groups and politicians is gaining in momentum as they prepare to oppose it. Indeed in November more than a third of the members of Brazil's lower house signed a petition to block legislation which would liberalise gaming.
However, while it seemed as if Brazil could well have given the green light to gaming before the end of 2016, and change has been slower than originally envisaged Brazil still needs to pull itself out of its deepest-ever recession. With two bills still in Congress and impetus now growing from both the executive branch as well as the Ministry of Tourism major changes to Brazil’s gaming continue to look likely in the near future.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84
