More than 100 French mayors call for government to end online casino aspirations
Open letter claims up to 15,000 jobs could be lost should plans to legalise vertical come into effect
More than 100 French mayors have penned an open letter to Prime Minister Michel Barnier warning him against opening “Pandora’s Box” by legalising online casinos.
The letter, which was published in daily newspaper Le Figaro, was signed by 128 mayors from across France urging the prime minister to reconsider an amendment made to the French budget for 2025.
The amendment has suggested legalising the online casino market in France with a 55.6% tax rate to funnel tax monies to the state and also crush the growing black market.
France and Cyprus as the only two EU nations not to have regulation or legislation in place for online casinos.
A report from the French regulator, ANJ, said online casinos could account for as much as 50% of the French black market, which at the top end is estimated to be worth €1.5bn (£1.2bn) per year.
The near-900-word letter from the collection of French mayors suggested that by legalising online casinos, France’s existing land-based sector will be hampered.
The letter claims that 15,000 jobs in the country would be lost should online casino be regulated in France while warning the current tax payments from land-based operators are fundamental to local budgets.
The signatories also argued that up to a third of land-based casinos could be forced to shut down, along with a 25% decline in customer activity in those remaining.
In France, 196 municipalities are home to a casino, according to the letter, as the mayors urged the government not to make a “hasty decision”.
The letter read: “Mr Prime Minister, do you want to destroy 15,000 non-relocatable jobs in our municipalities? Of course not.
“However, if online casinos are authorised in France under the conditions provided by the government, this will amount to allowing large platforms to flood the public space with massive and aggressive advertising and take over the market.
“However, these companies, often domiciled in jurisdictions where taxation is low, will contribute neither to the real economy nor to the tax revenues of the State and our municipalities.
“Conversely, physical casinos play a fundamental role in the local economy. They generate 60,000 jobs and contribute to the financing of essential local public services such as education, culture and infrastructure.
“In some cities, tax revenues from casinos represent up to 50% of the municipal budget. The opening of online casinos will generate a distortion of competition to the detriment of local physical activity, employment in our municipalities and the tax revenues that fuel them.”
The letter went on to note that should online casino be regulated in France, it would likely have a detrimental effect on the population as gambling-related harm would spike.
The plea claimed that online casinos would increase gambling-related harm due to its “permanent accessibility”, with the group calling on the prime minister to protect the “mental health” of the nation.
The letter was signed by the mayors of major French cities including Lyon, Nice and Calais.
“Do we really want to weaken French companies, employers and major contributors to the State and municipal budgets for the benefit of digital players who will owe nothing, neither to the municipalities nor to the State, to create a supposed windfall of additional revenue that will disappear in the next finance law?
“Mr Prime Minister, there is still time to reverse this decision and engage in a real dialogue with local elected officials and representatives of the sector,” the letter concluded.