THE MACAU METRO MONITOR, DECEMBER 5, 2013
JAPAN'S LDP LEGISLATORS SUBMIT BILL IN DIET TO LEGALIZE CASINOS Strait Times
Japanese lawmakers from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party submitted a bill to legalize casinos to parliament. The bill was also jointly submitted by the members of the Japan Restoration Party and other groups, Hiroyuki Hosoda, the chairman of a cross-party group of pro-casino lawmakers. LDP’s junior coalition partner New Komeito has approved the submission, LDP’s policy chief Sanae Takaichi said.
The parties aim to pass the bill in the next session beginning January, said Hosoda, who is also an executive acting LDP secretary-general. The bill, which was drafted by a group of pro-casino lawmakers across parties, was approved by the LDP’s General Council last month.
The LDP has a single-party majority in the lower house and would probably gain enough opposition support to pass the bill in the upper house and enact the law even without New Komeito’s backing.
