As was to be expected, the National Council of Tourism Businesses (CNET) pronounced itself against the approval of the Mexican Gambling Law, and demanded an in-depth and impartial study to be carried out before any further progress is made. At a gathering of the press the president of CNET told reporters that the University of Mexico could submit such a study, but that the House of Deputies had refused to pay the US$360,000 cost and had also refused the offer from CNET to cover the cost, saying the offer was too late and questionably biased.

What was not to be expected was the surprising decision taken on Wednesday by the House of Deputies’ Tourism Commission to approve the Gambling Law in principle, allowing for the operation of casinos in Mexico. In spite of doubts that remain over gambling laws in Mexico, the vote was passed by 13 to 3, with 5 abstentions, and a green light given to the regulation of Las Vegas style casinos.

The next stage for the bill is scrutiny by a Government Commission who can approve, make amendments or throw it out. With Commission approval the bill would be sent before parliament, probably during the current session. Stating that the House of Deputies had now decided to approve the bill, legislator Margarita Martinez declared, “Society demanded it of us.”

The approval was based on a study by Juan Martín Sandoval, which considered many opinions on gambling without reaching a final conclusion. It seems that the Mexican legislators have decided that the sudden urgency of CNET’s proposal to pay for the University study, which it could have commissioned when studies were originally called for, was a delaying tactic whilst illegal gambling in Mexico continued to profit by millions of dollars.

It is to be hoped that the proposed gambling legislation will become law in Mexico as soon as this year, following Chile and the United Kingdom. A modern Gambling Law would benefit all Mexicans except those seeking to prolong illegal gambling for personal profit, who make no contribution to society through taxation. (E-04.08.05)

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