Japan’s plan to introduce regulated integrated casino resorts (IR) is likely to see further delays and complications due to the resignation of Shinzo Abe, the country’s Prime Minister. The license bidding for the three planned casino resorts has been going on since 2018 after the country’s government passed legislation that officially paved the way for legal casino gambling on Japanese soil.
This past June, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe insisted on continuing with the casino resorts’ development according to plan despite the global coronavirus pandemic. During a parliamentary session, Japan’s Prime Minister expressed his conviction that the local tourism sector is likely to recover once the country manages to contain the spread of the infectious disease.
In Mr. Abe’s words at the time, the introduction of the integrated resorts that are to house the gaming venues would help develop the tourism sector in the country and transform it into a highly desirable tourist destination. The launch of the three integrated resorts is also expected to further the economic growth in the Land of the Rising Sun.
The Japanese government intended to release its formal criteria for the choice of hosts at the beginning of January 2020. However, the announcement plans for the formalization of the criteria were stalled in December 2019 amid a scandal involving the Japanese politician and House of Councillors member Tsukasa Akimoto.
The lawmaker was also one of the prominent members of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party of Japan (LDP). Mr. Akimoto was apprehended for allegedly accepting bribes to the amount of ¥3 million from the Chinese company 500.com Limited that aimed at opening a casino resort in Japan.
The Japanese lawmaker was indicted but continued to maintain his innocence, insisting he had never favored specific companies. Further developments occurred this past week after several former advisers of 500.com Limited pleaded guilty of bribing Mr. Akimoto in an attempt to help their company’s bid for an integrated casino resort. According to the two advisors, they offered the Japanese politician total bribes to the amount of ¥7.6 million.
Japan Is Unlikely to See Integrated Resorts in Late 2020
The scandal put the government’s plans for the resorts’ criteria on hold. Then the coronavirus pandemic occurred and many industry experts feared this could further interfere with the plans for the integrated resorts’ development. A government official commented at the time the Japanese authorities must focus their efforts on adequately restraining the infectious disease.
The next blow to the project’s development occurred this past Friday when Japan’s Prime Minister Abe unexpectedly announced his intentions to resign from his current position. The PM cited his declining health as the reason for his resignation. This could lead to further delays and complications in the casino development process.
The authorities of the Osaka Prefecture have already given up on the idea to launch an integrated casino resort prior to the 2025 World Expo that is to take place in the city. Similar sentiments are echoed by the authorities of the Yokohama and Kanagawa Prefectures. The governments of the two cities have also said they intend their plans to launch integrated resorts this year may be delayed.
