The Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Yasutoshi Nishimura, says he wants the country’s burgeoning integrated resort industry to “showcase a new Japanese style” to the world.
The Special Advisor to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made an unannounced stop at the Japan Gaming Congress on Thursday to address the crowd of around 450 attendees. In somewhat dramatic scenes, Nishimura literally sprinted through Conrad Tokyo to the conference hall before presenting a short speech in which he outlined his hopes for the IR Implementation Bill to be passed before the current Diet session closes on 20 June.
However, Inside Asian Gaming was also granted a brief doorstop interview on his way out.
“We wish more inbound tourists to see Japan. We hope we can have a positive effect on the economy and we can showcase a new Japanese style,” Nishimura told IAG, declaring that the government hasn’t given up on opening the country’s first IRs before 2025.
“As the Central Government, we recognise the IR bill has now been submitted, so we have just requested the Diet to debate about the bill. All party groups have a representative to discuss the IR situation, so we hope the debate can proceed smoothly.
“After the bill is passed we would like to build the government’s policy and based on this policy or regulation any prefecture, candidate city and IR operator can start to apply and then if everything proceeds smoothly I am hoping to have an IR here in Japan in the early 2020s.”
That timeline seems somewhat ambitious however, with Member of the House of Representatives for coalition partner Komeito, Kiyohiko Toyama, telling IAG that, “The bill has to be passed by both houses and for that we need probably one-and-a-half months.”
In an exclusive sit down interview, Toyama also told IAG that Japanese media had largely misled the Japanese public in regards to expected negative impacts of integrated resorts.
“In a nut shell, there are still many misleading media coverages of the IR bill and that has to be corrected,” he said. “Of course people are quick to criticize casino gambling. I understand there are negative side effects and that is okay to discuss, but I have seen a lack of balance in the way that IRs with casinos have been presented by the Japanese media.
“So many Japanese people have been misled to believe without any concrete evidence that once any IRs with casinos open in Japan that they will become really bad places in terms of security, safety and their influence over children. There is no evidence of that.”
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