Spains Ministry of Consumer Affairs Warns of Gambling Tax Reform – GamblingNews.com

Spains Minister of Consumer Affairs has made public the ministrys plans to introduce changes to the countrys taxation on gambling and sports betting operators.

Alberto Garzn, Spains Minister of Consumer Affairs, shared his departments plans to revise the taxation of gambling and sports betting operators across the country in an interview with Europa Press radio. The minister revealed that Spains Ministry of Consumer Affairs and the Ministry of Finance are discussing potential new formulas to the tax regime, although there is no definite proposal yet.

Garzn highlighted that the Ministry of Consumer Affairs will focus on the challenges arising from brick-and-mortar venues. The minister said that the gambling regulation of physical sites is in the hands of the countrys autonomous governments, and as a result the legislation differs across the various communities. The objective is to create unified regulations applicable to all 17 autonomous communities.

The initiative was initially announced in the end of 2020 and consists in establishing a new agency responsible for harmonizing the countrys federal gambling rules and standards. Apart from the standardized laws, the ministry will aim to create a federal self-exclusion scheme and an online gambling player registry. This step is a crucial part of the Ministry of Consumer Affairs phase 2 of revising Spanish gambling laws.

Additionally, the head of the Ministry of Consumer Affairs emphasized that the pandemic has led many people to spend more hours gambling as a way to cope with the situation and its negative consequences. And although the opening hours of the establishments have been reduced, the chances of potential health problems have increased greatly.

Garzn said that Spains physical betting venues are becoming a preferred place for entertainment among the younger population, which is a social issue and should be addressed.

The leisure model of cities is another major challenge, Garzn added:

Cities that have more gambling houses than green parks, the message that is passed on to people is the leisure of young people has to be done there and that is a starting problem that the pandemic exacerbates.

Garzn indicated that the pandemic has had a negative impact on public health in terms of gambling consumption, but it is still too early to draw conclusions.

In January, the director-general of Spains gambling regulator, the Direccin General de Ordenacin del Juego (DGOJ), Mikel Arana, said that Spain does not have a public health problem related to gambling. The regulators head commented on the results of studies carried out by the DGOJ itself and the National Plan on Drugs.

As a response to this statement, Spains digital gaming association said it is proof of the conscious arbitrariness and disproportionality behind the Royal Decree that introduces a series of restrictions on the sector.

See original here:

Spains Ministry of Consumer Affairs Warns of Gambling Tax Reform - GamblingNews.com