Report Turmoil Over Thai Casino Bill: Tourism Industry Sounds Alarm

[webfact]

Image courtesy of 3304buddies

 

The looming dissolution of the House is not the only political storm brewing in Thailand. Tourism operators have sounded a warning against hasty decisions concerning the controversial casino legalisation attached to the Entertainment Complex Bill. With street protests a real risk, the fear is that the fragile tourism industry could suffer extensively.

 

Political instability could not come at a worse time, given the unresolved border dispute with Cambodia. Thienprasit Chaiyapatranun, president of the Thai Hotels Association, has expressed concerns over the government possibly having a short tenure due to coalition rifts.

 

Analysts suggest that the House might dissolve within the next year, adding uncertainty to the political landscape. Despite the urgency to address pressing issues like the sluggish economy and border tensions, any plans to legalise casinos are seen as potentially harmful to public stability.

 

There is optimism in sight with the government's acceleration of a 157-billion-baht stimulus budget. However, Mr Thienprasit warns that swiftly pushing for the Entertainment Complex Bill could amplify risks.

 

Given past criticisms, the decision to forgo a public referendum could jeopardise the project. Mr Thienprasit emphasises that public consensus is essential, urging the government to allow a referendum to gauge public opinion.

 

Previous attempts to strategise tourism have faltered, owing to frequent changes in the tourism and sports ministers. A continued political tug-of-war might affect Thailand's economy, as power dynamics overshadow duty fulfilment.

 

Sisdivachr Cheewarattanaporn, advisory chairman at the Association of Thai Travel Agents, echoed concerns that political instability has eroded economic confidence.

 

The business sector and the public are fatigued by political manoeuvring that seems to prioritise self-interest over national interest. "With pressing issues like the border conflict with Cambodia, government focus should lie in fostering national interest rather than internal disputes," Mr Sisdivachr remarked.

 

As debates and decisions ensue, it remains crucial that politikos weigh nationwide implications, especially those impacting economic linchpins like tourism.

 

The controversial Entertainment Complex Bill appears to stand at the crossroads of economic potential and social discord, awaiting its fate in the political arena.

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from Bangkok Post 2025-06-19

 

 

[hotchilli]

23 hours ago, webfact said:

There is optimism in sight with the government's acceleration of a 157-billion-baht stimulus budget. However, Mr Thienprasit warns that swiftly pushing for the Entertainment Complex Bill could amplify risks.

The present government want to push this through, they see it as a money maker..

Would make more sense to use the money and overhaul the facilities at resort areas.

Making it more pleasant for all and not just the rich.

[Srikcir]

23 hours ago, webfact said:

Political instability could not come at a worse time

Been the situation for almost more than a decade (since May 2014). 

Can anyone believe that Thailand has been in a "Golden Era" during that time?

[kingstonkid]

The budget and casino bill like everything else is dead.  There is little chance that the BJT will get what it wants in the budget and is against the casino.  Anything the government is going to try to pass will die a quick death.

 

There really is only one solution and that is a quick election to get a new party in place running things sooner than later,  Forget about the long handover period. As soon as the PTP loses, the trucks should back up, take their stuff out, and move the winner in.  The winning party needs to be able to start as soon as the election is over.  

[poyai111]

The carrot of corruption has an irresistable allure to those who wield power. Thailand is facing an economic catastrophe and with the closure of car manufacturing factories in the last year and Nissan about to wave the white flag I think Ford will ultimately experience the same fate. Couple this resultant unemployment with that of the collapse of the tourist industry and these nabobs of nepotism reckon a casino will solve their problems. I believe that the only real solution is to devalue the baht by 20 per cent asap. Exports will be cheaper and tourists will see value in a holiday in Thailand. A casino benefits only a small clique of wealthy patrons and will have a disastrous effect on local citizens. Expect more closures of restaurants and bars and the consequent exponential growth in pawn shops as desperadoes pawn their possessions to finance their gambling addiction

[kiwikeith]

39 minutes ago, poyai111 said:

The carrot of corruption has an irresistable allure to those who wield power. Thailand is facing an economic catastrophe and with the closure of car manufacturing factories in the last year and Nissan about to wave the white flag I think Ford will ultimately experience the same fate. Couple this resultant unemployment with that of the collapse of the tourist industry and these nabobs of nepotism reckon a casino will solve their problems. I believe that the only real solution is to devalue the baht by 20 per cent asap. Exports will be cheaper and tourists will see value in a holiday in Thailand. A casino benefits only a small clique of wealthy patrons and will have a disastrous effect on local citizens. Expect more closures of restaurants and bars and the consequent exponential growth in pawn shops as desperadoes pawn their possessions to finance their gambling addiction

Don't forget the money lenders and the mafia debt collectors will flourish along with theft and people having to sell the farm 

[Thingamabob]

1 hour ago, kingstonkid said:

The budget and casino bill like everything else is dead.  There is little chance that the BJT will get what it wants in the budget and is against the casino.  Anything the government is going to try to pass will die a quick death.

 

There really is only one solution and that is a quick election to get a new party in place running things sooner than later,  Forget about the long handover period. As soon as the PTP loses, the trucks should back up, take their stuff out, and move the winner in.  The winning party needs to be able to start as soon as the election is over.  

Dream on.

[wombat]

1 hour ago, poyai111 said:

nabobs 

ive learnt a new word

[kingstonkid]

44 minutes ago, Thingamabob said:

Dream on.

 

But we all have to have dreams. Just think what living here would be like if we did not have them and all there was was disorganization with no end in sight.

[BritManToo]

7 minutes ago, kingstonkid said:

 

But we all have to have dreams. Just think what living here would be like if we did not have them and all there was was disorganization with no end in sight.

I thought disorganisation with no end in sight IS the dream?

[kingstonkid]

8 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

I thought disorganisation with no end in sight IS the dream?

For the rich

[kingstonkid]

2 hours ago, poyai111 said:

The carrot of corruption has an irresistable allure to those who wield power. Thailand is facing an economic catastrophe and with the closure of car manufacturing factories in the last year and Nissan about to wave the white flag I think Ford will ultimately experience the same fate. Couple this resultant unemployment with that of the collapse of the tourist industry and these nabobs of nepotism reckon a casino will solve their problems. I believe that the only real solution is to devalue the baht by 20 per cent asap. Exports will be cheaper and tourists will see value in a holiday in Thailand. A casino benefits only a small clique of wealthy patrons and will have a disastrous effect on local citizens. Expect more closures of restaurants and bars and the consequent exponential growth in pawn shops as desperadoes pawn their possessions to finance their gambling addiction

The trick with a casino is to allow a real company to set it up and run it. The Vegas boys know what they want. In the case of MGM and Caesars, they also know what families want. They have the ability to not only set up the casinos but also know and have the connections for things like UFC, celebrity singers, and entertainers and know what is good and what is bad.

 

If the casino is set up properly, it will flourish. Unfortunately, there will be people who abuse the system, but they get weeded out pretty quickly, and most of these people are already screwing up their lives in black market casinos.

 

As to Bars and such a great deal depends on where they build the casino.  If they build it on the waterront in Bangkok or near Bali Hai pier in Pattaya, it will not have that much of an effect.  If they build it in the middle of beach road then yeah it might 

 

Again it all depends on what and where.  The one thing i will tell you that will not fly is the guaranteed money and bank account for Thais.  No Farang that I know that is there for a holiday is dating a super-rich Thai girl. 

[wensiensheng]

“Political instability could not come at a worse time, given the unresolved border dispute with Cambodia.”

 

This dispute has been in place for the last 100 years. It’s basically a non factor in anything. 
 

The major reason why it’s never been resolved is because it’s a dispute over a patch of scrubland/jungle that has meaningless value to anyone other than the people that live there. If it had any real value one or other side would have seized it way before now.

 

The major decision that both sides need to take is to do nothing and let the dispute continue for the next 100 years. And both sides are quite good at doing nothing so it’s odds on favorite that this is what will happen.

 

 

[wensiensheng]

6 minutes ago, kingstonkid said:

The trick with a casino is to allow a real company to set it up and run it. The Vegas boys know what they want. In the case of MGM and Caesars, they also know what families want. They have the ability to not only set up the casinos but also know and have the connections for things like UFC, celebrity singers, and entertainers and know what is good and what is bad.

 

If the casino is set up properly, it will flourish. Unfortunately, there will be people who abuse the system, but they get weeded out pretty quickly, and most of these people are already screwing up their lives in black market casinos.

 

As to Bars and such a great deal depends on where they build the casino.  If they build it on the waterront in Bangkok or near Bali Hai pier in Pattaya, it will not have that much of an effect.  If they build it in the middle of beach road then yeah it might 

 

Again it all depends on what and where.  The one thing i will tell you that will not fly is the guaranteed money and bank account for Thais.  No Farang that I know that is there for a holiday is dating a super-rich Thai girl. 

I think that the major issue for the Vegas companies will be corruption. They won’t want any part of that because if it came  to light, then they could lose their gaming licenses in Vegas, Singapore and Macao.

 

Macao is a small place and after handover to the Chinese it was easy to turn it from a corruption ridden island into something approximating respectability. So the Vegas companies could operate there within the limits of normal business risks.

 

But in Thailand. How can corruption be eliminated? If I were running one of the major US based companies, I would be a little wary. Of course, plenty of smaller Asian players might be up for it, with of course local participation.

[kingstonkid]

7 minutes ago, wensiensheng said:

“Political instability could not come at a worse time, given the unresolved border dispute with Cambodia.”

 

This dispute has been in place for the last 100 years. It’s basically a non factor in anything. 
 

The major reason why it’s never been resolved is because it’s a dispute over a patch of scrubland/jungle that has meaningless value to anyone other than the people that live there. If it had any real value one or other side would have seized it way before now.

 

The major decision that both sides need to take is to do nothing and let the dispute continue for the next 100 years. And both sides are quite good at doing nothing so it’s odds on favorite that this is what will happen.

 

 

The Cambodia Thai land issue is nothing new.  In a minor sense, it is comparable to the Pak Indian LOC. 

 

Both sides want it. Neither and every spring it gets a little dicey because the militants on both sides have had a winter to plan and ge upset.   However, life in the rest of the countries goes on.  The Wagah border still operates because it is a cash cow for both countries.  Most people do not care about it, just as most Thais really do not care bout the border dispute.  They know tht both countries will puff up their chests, say a few nasty things, and close or restrict the border for a couple of days at worst.  It's more about justifying their military spending than it has anything to do with 3 old temple sites.  Imagine if Thailand did not have anyone to fight and ASEAN all got along, how would they justify all the military spending?  

[Thingamabob]

1 hour ago, kingstonkid said:

 

But we all have to have dreams. Just think what living here would be like if we did not have them and all there was was disorganization with no end in sight.

Fair comment. I would only say that although Thailand appears disorganized it does work in it's own offbeat way, not without charm.

 

[henryford1958]

The elites will make a fortune from this so of course it will get approved.

[wensiensheng]

1 hour ago, henryford1958 said:

The elites will make a fortune from this so of course it will get approved.

Yep. Every casino will need a local partner I assume

[wensiensheng]

1 hour ago, Thingamabob said:

Fair comment. I would only say that although Thailand appears disorganized it does work in it's own offbeat way, not without charm.

 

Not without charm….and a hefty dose of frustration.