Ukraine govt endorses gambling legalisation bill
The government of Ukraine has endorsed a draft law on the legalisation of gambling in the territory.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has endorsed a bill that aims to legalise gambling in the country. The government has been trying to push for the legalisation after President Volodymyr Zelensky urged them to legalize the segment.
The government published an official document on its website saying that the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine endorsed a package of draft laws on September 29. The document says that the draft laws legalise gambling in Ukraine, UNIAN reported.
The draft establishes that, if approved, gambling will be conducted exclusively on the territory of hotels, with the use of gambling equipment with software that meets international standards.
Ukraine banned gambling in 2009, but gambling businesses still operate without contributing to taxes. Therefore, they don’t bring revenues to the national budget. The Finance Ministry said that gambling could bring approximately US$200 million to the budget. However, experts believe that more that Ukraine could perceive more than US$400 million if they legalise gambling.
The president’s word
Zelensky had already urged the government to legalise gambling. Last month, he instructed the parliamentary majority to develop and implement laws to legalise gambling in the country. He wants these rules to be in place before December 1, 2020.
In a meeting with members of the Cabinet of Ministers, Verkhovna Rada leadership and law enforcement officials, the President ordered the officials to start measures to legalise gambling in Ukraine.
“Concerning measures to remove the economy from the shadows: to prepare bills on the legalisation of the gambling industry and legalisation of amber production and submit them to the parliament. The deadline is October 1, 2019.”
“The officials in charge: Prime Minister Oleksiy Honcharuk and Finance Minister Oksana Markarova. Adopt laws on the legalisation of the gambling industry and legalisation of amber production. The deadline: December 1, 2019. The officials in charge: [Verkhovna Rada Chairman] Dmytro Razumkov and [Head of the Servant of the People parliamentary faction] David Arakhamia,” he added.
