A new bill in Cyprus to fight illegal gambling

The government of Cyprus is currently working on a draft law on the legalisation of casinos in their territory.
You might already know this because we have previously talked about this topic in these articles: Cyprus might legalise land-based casinos and Cyprus will issue its first license in 2015.
Alongside this new legislation the country’s authorities also want to fight establishments more effectively that offer illegal gambling to their customers.
An action is on the verge of being finalised, and it should be adopted by the Parliament before the summer holidays.

The content of the law

The law aims to strengthen the authority of the police in the area, with regards to the fight against illegal gambling establishments.
Additionally, it will also introduce severe sanctions against the operators. It will allow authorities to close the places where you can play games of chance without the operator having an official permission.
The operators of these establishments also risk 5 years in prison and fines up to €300,000.

The official presentation of the text

The Chairman of the Home Affairs Committee, AKEL MP Yiannos Lamaris, has officially introduced the bill that aims to make it easier for the authorities to eradicate illegal gambling.
According to him the current legislation makes it difficult to prove the illegal use of slot machines.
Future measures will allow the closure of an establishment until the case is heard by a court.
Such a bill would have a greater impact than the current legislation allows.
It is not uncommon at the moment that the police seizes gaming equipment of one establishment, which will then re-open the next day with brand-new appliances.
The new bill will also allow prison sentences up to 5 years and fines up to €300,000.

The reactions of the politicians

According to the MP Andreas Kyprianou, this new law will represent a positive development that will give the authorities power to actually fight the spread of the illegal gambling industry.
The opposition believes that the bill should have been implemented a long time ago.
This is rather tricky way to approve a bill that is supported by the government.