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Singapore strives to balance costs and benefits of casinos
The Straits Times
Singapore July 16, 2012 1:00 am
Singapore's casinos were from the start a high-wire act involving the fine balancing of huge investments, adequate economic returns and prickly social considerations at times.
Dynamic adjustments are thus inevitable. The latest proposal to amend the Casino Control Act should be seen as part of this continuous process in which rules are refined to uphold the two integrated resorts' economic rationale while minimising their social cost.
Ever since the resorts containing casinos opened two years ago, they have had to justify their rationale as substantial contributors to the economy that do not, at the same time, create problems serious enough to overwhelm the benefits they bring. Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa appear to have met these twin goals by accounting for nearly 1.5 per cent of Singapore's gross domestic product, creating about 22,000 jobs within the resorts, and helping support more than 40,000 jobs in sectors such as hospitality, retail, and food and beverages. As for problems, casino-linked crimes have been mostly petty and make up less than 1 per cent of overall crimes.
Determined to prevent the casinos from turning Singapore into a society of gamblers, it was made clear early on that the resorts were expected to draw on international patrons rather than local residents for the bulk of their gaming revenue. Indeed, the authorities instituted stringent safeguards to curb problem gambling and mitigate the disastrous impact it could have on Singapore's families, social values and work ethos. Towards that end, an intricate system of exclusions and other rules was put in place.
Among other things, the proposed amendments tighten those rules by focusing on financially vulnerable gamblers. This particular emphasis is laudable although, in the effort to contain problem gambling, the rules should not become so onerous as to seriously dampen responsible gaming. Just how the balance is struck is an issue on which the public should weigh in through the feedback invited for the latest exercise.
The broader context of the regulatory framework is that the casinos were never meant to overshadow the attractiveness of the resorts as tourist draws. Instead, the resorts were intended to enhance Singapore's reputation as a distinctive destination, with the casinos forming one component of an array of attractions. The two resorts should use profits from their hugely successful gambling operations to ensure that their other attractions remain world-class. Otherwise, those attractions will be seen as merely window dressing for the money that the casinos make. This cannot be good for their own image, and Singapore’s.