Italian lawmaker calls for changes to budget measures affecting gambling firms
Regulation2 min read
In brief
- He said he would seek corrections to budget measures affecting gambling, keeping balances unchanged.
- He argued severe restrictions could push activity towards illegal circuits, while acknowledging problem gambling.
Mauro D’Attis, a Forza Italia deputy, said tax policy should take account of the need to protect businesses and jobs in the gambling sector. D’Attis sits on the Budget Committee and is vice-president of the parliamentary Antimafia Committee. He spoke at the SiGMA Central Europe Summit in Rome, in a panel on whether small retail operators can still compete in the new market.
D’Attis said he would look for corrections to the budget measures during the parliamentary examination of the budget law. He said he had discussed the matter with industry insiders and that the aim would be to work with balances left unchanged. D’Attis noted that the budget law brings sacrifices for many economic sectors and for citizens. He also acknowledged the need to assess carefully how the measures affect public gaming companies. He said physical gaming, online gaming and lotteries bring significant revenue to the Treasury.
D’Attis argued that particularly severe restrictions, including territorial ones, can work against their stated aims by pushing activity towards clandestine circuits. He said this did not mean underestimating problem gambling or the need to promote responsible behaviour. On the Decreto Dignità, he recalled that it banned gambling advertising and sponsorship. He said the same measure also provided for labour market interventions funded with resources from the gambling sector, which he cited as an example of an incoherent approach.