Italy’s Deputy Economy Minister Maurizio Leo said a reform of physical gambling is under review by the government and could be presented to a future Council of Ministers. He said online gambling legislation is complete and concessions are in place, while work on the land-based sector continues.
The proposed reform could shape rules and operating conditions for Italy’s physical gambling sector.
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Italy’s Presidency of the Council has returned a draft decree on the reorganisation of land-based gambling, STS said. The trade union said the text had been prepared by the Economy Ministry with ADM technicians and reviewed by the Unified Conference; it warned that the 29 August deadline for the delegated authority was approaching and called for urgent reform.
The Italian Federation of Tobacconists urged the government to take a pragmatic approach to reforming the physical gambling network at its national assembly, which concluded on 28 May. Federation president Mario Antonelli said the network’s economic sustainability and the role of tobacconists should be considered as the government completes the reform process under its tax-delegation law. The federation also cited rising costs and declining numbers of tobacconists.
Stefano Vaccari, a Democratic Party MP, said the Italian government had not clarified its approach to reforming land-based gaming after answering a parliamentary question. He said the government had outlined technical aspects of a future tender but not policy choices, including possible limits on venues and machines, tax revenue sharing with regions and municipalities, and concession allocation criteria.
Experts and consumer representatives criticised Italy’s proposed physical gambling reform at a Senate press conference initiated by Five Star Movement senator Dolores Bevilacqua. The draft remains under development and would require unanimous approval from the regions and ANCI at the Unified Conference; critics cited proposed 100-metre and 200-metre venue distances and limits on local opening-hour rules.
ACMI president Gennaro Parlati said the association meets the Customs and Monopolies Agency almost weekly on Italy’s physical gambling reform, according to the report. He called for the changes to account for business sustainability and said companies had accepted significant investment to protect players.