Brazil Minister of Turism pushes forward on gambling reform bill

Despite the political turmoil in Brazil, which has seen state president Dilma Rousseff suspended and impeached, the push for gambling reform continued this week with Minister of Tourism Henrique Eduardo Alves speaking about the government’s intentions at a local travel expo.

Alves cited the legalisation of gambling as one of the priorities on his ministerial agenda. Alves, who has recently returned to government, said that in his previous state stewardship he had drafted a bill based on legalised gambling legislation in countries such as England, Spain, Portugal, Argentina and Uruguay.

“We must have the courage to face in a serious, professional and republican way the legalization of gambling,” he told expo delegates. “Currently, people play clandestinely, without generating any revenue for the country.”

The Brazilian press reports that there is some dissonance in government on the reforms, with the Federal Public Ministry (MPF) against the initiative.

During a hearing in March, Secretary of Institutional Relations, Peterson de Paula, opined that there is not enough evidence or comparative studies to prove that monetising and regulating casinos and bingo parlours guarantees a positive impact on revenue as enjoyed by other countries.

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