Japan has approved a controversial plan to build the country’s first casino, after decades of debate fuelled by fears that an increase in tourist spending could be blighted by a rise in gambling addiction.
The casino complex, which will include restaurants, shops and entertainment facilities as part of an “integrated resort”, will be built in the western port city of Osaka, where senior politicians have pushed for its construction and rejected demands for a local referendum.
Authorities in Osaka hope the project will be completed in 2029 at an initial cost of 1.8tn yen (£10.8bn). “The city’s bid was approved after sufficient examination from various perspectives”, the Tourism and Infrastructure Minister, Tetsuo Saito said.
Once the only major economy to ban casinos, Japan passed legislation in 2016 paving the way to make the industry legal, with parliament later enacting a law to allow the construction of integrated resorts. The Osaka complex will be run by the Japanese unit of MGM Resorts International and Orix, a financial services company, along with about 20 local firms. In addition to a casino, the complex – to be built on the artificial island of Yumeshima – will include a hotel, an international conference hall, exhibition facilities and a theatre.
The Osaka government estimates the project will have an annual economic impact worth 1.14tn yen and create 15,000 jobs. Up to 20 million visitors from Japan and overseas are expected to use the complex every year, generating sales of 520bn yen, 80% of which will come directly from the casinos.
Japan is a nation of keen gamblers, with publicly run horse, speedboat, motorcycle and keirin bicycle racing together bringing in the equivalent of billions of dollars a year, while pachinko, a pinball-like game played at 7,600 parlours nationwide, generated 14.6tn yen in sales in 2020. A 2021 government survey found 2.8 million people – about 2.2% of the population – were affected by gambling addiction.
To address those concerns, Japanese citizens will have to pay a 6,000-yen fee for every 24 hours they spend in the casino, with a portion of the fee earmarked for gambling addiction measures, according to an Osaka official. There will also be a cap on the number of visits by Japanese gamblers, and family members can request that a relative be banned from using casinos, Saito said.
