Argentine bishops urge Senate to debate online betting bill before 30 November
Regulation1 min read
In brief
- Argentina's bishops urged the Senate to debate the online betting and problem gambling bill before 30 November.
- The bill has had Deputies' half-sanction since November 2024.
- The Senate unanimously approved a preference motion to speed up debate.
The Argentine Episcopal Conference urged the Senate to advance the online betting regulation bill before it loses parliamentary status on 30 November. The conference made the request at a press conference ahead of Pope Leo XIV's visit to the country.
The bill on preventing problem gambling and regulating online betting has had half-sanction from the Chamber of Deputies since November 2024. The Senate unanimously approved a preference motion to speed up its handling of the bill.
The bill proposes measures to prevent gambling problems among children and young people and sets out a framework for regulating online betting.
Monsignor Marcelo Colombo, president of the Argentine Episcopal Conference, said only a few weeks or days remain before the Deputies' half-sanction lapses. Colombo asked senators not to let the bill die.
Academic, scientific and clinical professionals backed the Church's request in a letter to the Senate. The signatories include Lucía Fainboim, Victoria O’Donnell, Federico Pavlovsky, Pablo Boczkowski and Matías Dalla Fontana. The specialists wrote that early hyperconnectivity, virtual wallets and an aggressive advertising and sponsorship campaign have created conditions for what they called a casino in every teenager's pocket.