By Andria Kades
AMENDMENTS to the casino bill requiring entrance criteria strictly for Cypriot players are discriminatory and risk the viability of the whole project, Undersecretary to the President Constantinos Petrides has said.
Any provisions that endanger the casino project would not be implemented, he told the Cyprus News Agency. The tender for the casino resort will be announced in September. The plan is that seven to eight months afterwards, the licence will be granted.
The precise details on the income criteria, as well as where and how the cards are to be issued, will be covered by regulations which the government will draft and bring to parliament once it reopens after the summer recess.
It is understood that a person would need to obtain a certification from Inland Revenue so as to be eligible to apply for a membership card that will allow them to enter the premises and would depend on a person’s annual income. This criteria will apply to Cypriot nationals only.
Investors will be given time to examine the legislation once it is approved.
His remarks left EDEK MP George Varnava unfazed who said, “I believe he is basing this on the theory that European citizens shouldn’t be separated. However, if he goes to international casinos and I believe he has, he will find that different resorts operate using different rules.”
“If he wants to question the viability of the project, we cannot question the wellbeing of the Cypriot society. If we put the two on a scale we will always place higher importance on Cypriot society.”
The law also provides for one casino resort and four satellites, three of which will only host gambling machines, while the fourth will also include table games, something that doesn’t risk the viability of the casino, Petrides said.
AKEL’s stance on the matter is well known, arguing against it on the basis that it causes serious problems to society.
Petrides also commented on the amendment that outlines state land will not be used for the construction of the casinos saying this will not affect the project.
“There is plenty of land and a private investor will have to decide accordingly based on the model he is after.”
The state does not want to get involved in the business process, he specified, and there is plenty of private land across Cyprus several investors are looking at, some of which are “big” in the industry.
At the moment, the country is stabilising and is marginally recovering, he added.
