Gov't tables ministry paper on casino gaming

[Lazie]

Balford Henry
Thursday, January 15, 2009


A critical step in the process of establishing casino gaming in Jamaica was taken Tuesday with the tabling of a ministry paper on the proposed legislation in Parliament.
Ministry Paper number 3/2009 introduced the basis for the legislation, the new Casino Gaming Act, with provisions for a regulatory framework to be administered by a casino gaming commission as well as for a taxation regime.
Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett said Tuesday night that it is a key plank in the process of product diversification for tourism enunciated by himself and Prime Minister Bruce Golding.
The ministry paper points out that the diversification of the tourism profile to include luxury-integrated resorts is a priority of the Government. Bartlett said he expects the legislation to be tabled in Parliament very shortly.
According to the ministry paper, there will be a tax on the gross winnings of the licensee or the amount staked or bet by customers less the amount paid out to customers as winnings. The minister will make regulations covering time and manner of payment, rates of interest on late payments and offences for breaches.
There will be no allowance for bad debt resulting from credit extended for gambling.
The number of casinos will be restricted and the casino component will form no more than 20 per cent of the total scope and cost of each approved project.

The Government is already negotiating with two investors - Tavistock Group, which is to start its 8,000-room Harmony Cove in Trelawny in 2010, and Palmyra Resort & Spa which plans to construct a 1,000-room casino hotel as part of its Celebration Jamaica project in Montego Bay.
In his budget speech last year, Golding announced the government's decision to go ahead with the issuing of the two licences. The projects are expected to employ approximately 25,000 workers.

[Jangle]

Run wid it GOJ!!!!

[Lazie]

Run wid it GOJ!!!!

Aren't you worried its going to continue the moral decay of our country?

[Jangle]

Nope. Casino gambling has nothing to do with a society's morality.

[Lazie]

Nope. Casino gambling has nothing to do with a society's morality.

easy yuhself Jangle.

[Jangle]

What I would love to see is a little more thinking out of the box by the GOJ. I believe that with the passing of the bill, the GOJ should look at developing other areas of Jamaica by designating a special area for casino gambling. St. Thomas and St. Mary come readily to mind. The North and West coasts already have the sun, sand and sea to offer the tourists. By designating these areas, it will force development.

[Jangle]

Clarke pilots new Casino Bill through House

JAMAICA'S failure to develop a profitable and sustainable casino industry, 11 years after passing the necessary legislation, is about to be amended to deliver more investments and jobs.

Minister of Finance and the Public Service Dr Nigel Clarke last night piloted a Bill through the House of Representatives, supported by the Opposition, which the Government believes will create an environment conducive to this kind of investment.

He said the new approach is being taken against the background of having a casino gaming legislative framework in place for over a decade with no successful casino gaming investment in Jamaica, the country having experienced the worst economic contraction in its history, and the need for increased economic activity and economic recovery.

“Through dialogue with various stakeholders we are making amendments with the goal of having billions of US dollars of investments being made in Jamaica over the next few years. This will diversify our tourism product, diversify our arrival patterns and seasonal trends, and make Jamaica's tourism product more resilient,” Dr Clarke said.

https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news...4?profile=1373

[Assasin]

The only problem with doing it in those two parishes is it is going to need a lot of infrastructure development. One of the biggest is water, they are building roads but communication is poor there as well.

Still your idea is valid, and I think that would take care of some poverty on the east end of the island.

[OJ]

I hear you Jangle but you need to bring it where people are. I dont think the profile for eastern jamaica st thomas portland and st mary is for casinos and I dont think the people there really want it. Maybe St Mary but I know Portland dont want that type of tourism. I think it will be Lucea and most likely mobay

[Don1]

What I would love to see is a little more thinking out of the box by the GOJ. I believe that with the passing of the bill, the GOJ should look at developing other areas of Jamaica by designating a special area for casino gambling. St. Thomas and St. Mary come readily to mind. The North and West coasts already have the sun, sand and sea to offer the tourists. By designating these areas, it will force development.

So designating areas for gambling and prostitution "will force development"
What type of "development" do you anticipate from such businesses?? What skills are required and fostered by those sectors which would impact Jamaica's "development"??

I believe your "development theory" has already set St Thomas as a prostitution center. Now you want to add gambling?

Is gambling, prostitution and serving tourists the limit of your imagination for sparking progress in JA??? Those things get you excited about "development?

With nonsense like this being the norm it's no wonder the country is such a mess

[Sir X]

Cashier's and money changers alot of manual hand labor where basic math is the requirements ..lol

[Jangle]

Under the Act, the IRDs are seen as developments consisting of a mix of various tourism amenities and facilities in the same precinct, he explained. These facilities include, but are not limited to, hotels, hotel rooms, villas, casinos, attractions, sporting facilities, entertainment facilities, service centres and shopping centres.

I believe that St. Thomas is ideal for this type of development given its proximity to Kingston airport. Building a major hotel in St. Thomas will inevitably spur development.

[Don1]

Under the Act, the IRDs are seen as developments consisting of a mix of various tourism amenities and facilities in the same precinct, he explained. These facilities include, but are not limited to, hotels, hotel rooms, villas, casinos, attractions, sporting facilities, entertainment facilities, service centres and shopping centres.

I believe that St. Thomas is ideal for this type of development given its proximity to Kingston airport. Building a major hotel in St. Thomas will inevitably spur development.

Some have an extremely low bar for "development".

It would be far closer to reality to say that a few thousand - largely low level - jobs may be created and there will consequently be an uptick in disposable income, spending, building and increased business activity in the local area.

These are positive impacts.. but a far cry from what economists term "development"

Gambling, prostitution etc are not pathways to "development". Investments in education, 21st century skills, infrastructure, value-adding production of internationally competitive goods & services etc are the bedrock of "development"

Your thesis is nonsensical