A senior member of the Russian Communist Party has called on the Kremlin to reject the Ministry of Finance’s highly controversial online casino legalization plan.
Georgy Kamnev, a State Duma lawmaker and a member of the Communist Party’s Central Committee, called for a “complete ban on online casinos in Russia, the Russian media outlet News.ru reported. He said the Kremlin should block all web-based gambling platforms “without exception.”
The lawmaker urged banks and Roskomnadzor, the Russian web censor, to “join forces” and make access to these platforms a technical impossibility for residents.
Kamnev said that commercial banking groups and Roskomnadzor must do more to block gambling sites’ mirror sites.
He also urged the government to stamp out “VPN bypasses” and asked banks to block all payments they suspect to be linked to online casinos.
Online Casino Legalization Plan Is ‘Dangerous,’ Says Lawmaker
The Communist Party official said online casinos are part of a “dangerous sector that ruins people’s lives.”
“Gambling addiction leads Russians to accrue massive debts,” Kamnev said. “People take out microloans at exorbitant interest rates, mortgage their apartments, and even sell their property [to gamble].”
When their money runs out, Kamnev explained, debt collectors “appear on the doorstep.” In the most severe cases, “it ends in suicide,” the lawmaker added.
The state has a duty to protect its citizens, not profit from their weaknesses, he said. “The health of the nation and the well-being of Russian families are more important than boosting dubious tax revenues.”
Tax Bookmakers More, Urges Politician
The ministry says it needs new tax revenue streams. And it says that its efforts to shut down online casinos are proving largely useless, with operators using a myriad of mirror and proxy sites to evade blocking orders.
Finance chiefs say taxing online casino operators at a rate of 30% of their profits per year, minus winnings payouts, will earn Moscow billions of dollars a year.
But lawmakers remain skeptical. Some have suggested alternative ways of taxing the gambling sector without opening the door to online casinos.
These include Sergei Mironov, the leader of A Just Russia political faction.
In January, the lawmaker said the Russian government should increase profit taxes on bookmakers and legal land-based casinos to 50% instead of legalizing online casinos.
“We could also double tax rates on gaming tables, slot machines, and more. This will bring money into the state budget and curb the fast-growing profits of gambling establishments,” Mironov said.
The A Just Russia leader told the same media outlet that the country was already host to “plenty of land-based gambling establishments.
“There is no need to expand this sector any further,” he concluded.
Police Issue Warning
Gambling industry officials say they are confident lawmakers could approve the ministry’s legislation plans by the end of this month.
Betting addiction is on the rise in Russia, experts and police officials say.
Last month, police in Luzino, a village in the Omsk Oblast, accused a man of stealing his friend’s phone.
The suspect reportedly used the device to steal money, which he then frittered away on an illegal casino app.
