Thailand’s Cabinet on Tuesday (Jul 8) dropped a Bill to legalise casino gambling, a flagship project of the faltering ruling party, which last week saw its prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra suspended from office.
The so-called “entertainment complex” Bill was a key plank for the Pheu Thai party, aiming to legalise casinos and boost the nation’s spluttering economy by making it a regional gambling hub.
Most forms of betting are illegal in Thailand and Pheu Thai argued the Bill would end a thriving underground gambling industry by admitting it into the mainstream.
However, the party has only a razor-thin parliamentary majority after being abandoned by coalition partners over a scandal which saw the premier suspended.
The Cabinet has withdrawn the Bill because it “needs more studies that require further understanding and social context”, government spokesperson Jirayu Huangsab said in a statement.
Julapun Amornvivat, deputy finance minister, said they “accept it’s not the appropriate time”.
“It’s a shame, the delay is a lost opportunity for the country,” he told media.