Riga City Council Revives Bid to Limit Gambling Venues
The Riga City Council is making a renewed attempt to limit the presence of gambling venues throughout the capital city.
LISTEN TO THIS ARTICLE:According to local news sources, Mayor Vilnis Ķirsis is pushing for a resolution that would designate specific zones for gambling establishments in Riga.
The proposed plan bans gambling in several types of venues, including municipal properties, neighborhood hubs, cultural heritage sites, and designated protection areas.
The resolution also introduces buffer zones, prohibiting gambling venues within 300 meters of schools and residential areas and within 500 meters of major transportation hubs like airports, bus stations, passenger ports, and railway stations.
According to the mayor, the aim of the new rules is to drastically reduce gambling activities in Rīga. The city expects the binding regulations to be formally adopted in March, while the fate of specific gambling venues will be decided at the next council session.
Riga’s Ongoing Struggle to Regulate Gambling
This is not the first time Rīga has considered restricting gambling as city officials initially announced plans for a ban more than five years ago. However, the council’s tightening rules for Riga’s gambling venues in 2019 sparked numerous legal battles with local operators Alfors, Olympic Entertainment, Joker Ltd, and Admiral Klubs.
In 2022, the council initiated a process to close 139 gambling venues within the city by 2025. However, this move was met with strong opposition from local gambling operators, who swiftly filed an appeal with the Constitutional Court of Latvia, alleging that the council's actions were unauthorized and disregarded existing commercial permits.
If the order had taken effect, Riga would have limited gambling to only four- and five-star hotel properties.
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Stricter Rules to Fuel Black Market?
Industry experts have, however, voiced concerns about the new regulations, cautioning that overly restrictive measures could have unintended consequences, such as driving the industry underground, where it would be more difficult to regulate and monitor.
Juris Celmārs, Chairman of the Board of Olympic Casino Latvia, warned that banning a legitimate industry could fuel the growth of unlicensed gambling operations, depriving the state of tax income and evading regulatory supervision.
The Latvian Interactive Gambling Association (LIAB) has also stressed that any restrictions must be balanced, reasonable, and legally justified. Otherwise, they warn, the city may face protracted litigation, with potential damages and legal fees owed to the affected businesses.
RELATED TOPICS: Regulation
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