Gaming | Public consultation cancelled

The first public consultation session for the city’s gaming law, which was meant to be held today, will be cancelled due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic crisis.
Over the weekend, the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) announced that it will postpone the first of four public consultation sessions on proposed amendments to the city’s gaming law.
“The rescheduling (date and time) of this session will be communicated in due course,” the statement read.
Currently, the government is conducting a 45 day-long public consultation on the amendments to the gaming law aimed at three main aspects: perfecting the inspection juridical regime, raising general competitiveness, and developing a healthy and stable gaming sector.
Secretary Lei Wai Nong previously announced that concessionaires will be under tighter scrutiny from the government, which will have greater authority to verify the background of the staff hired by concessionaires as well as staff hired by entities who work with them.
Casino concessions are due to re-bid next year. However, the government has not yet provided guarantees that existing concessions will be renewed following their slated expiration in June 2022. Many have also called on the government to extend the validity of the concessions due to the adverse effect of the pandemic on the industry.