Having voted into law the Basic Bill on Gambling Addiction Countermeasures late last week, Japan’s Upper House officially kicked off deliberations on the long-awaited IR Implementation Bill on Tuesday.
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner Komeito remain hopeful of pushing through the final piece in the country’s casino puzzle before the end of the current Diet session on 22 July, despite ongoing attempts from Japan’s opposition parties to delay passage of the IR bill.
Some opponents had called on the government to halt any further discussions over the IR bill due to the devastating floods that have left 131 dead and 59 missing across the country as of Tuesday afternoon.
Like last month, when senior members of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan alongside those from five other opposition parties expressed their opposition to House of Representatives Speaker Tadamori Oshima regarding the 32-day extension to the Diet session, those pleas fell on deaf ears.
Passage of the IR Implementation Bill will open the door for Japan’s first casino resorts with three initial IR licenses to be offered. It is expected that two will be located in metropolitan areas and one in a regional location.