PRIME Minister Bruce Golding, who yesterday confirmed the Government's intention to give the green light to casino gaming here, says revenues from their operations would be put in a special fund to finance health, education and security.

The prime minister, speaking in the 2008/09 budget debate in Parliament, said the decision to permit the licensing of casinos came after a review of a 2003 study which concluded that casino gaming would be viable for Jamaica.

He told the House that while the "issue of casinos has been a lightning rod of controversy for a long time", it could not be ignored that slot machines, which are a principal feature of casinos the world over, are very much present in Jamaica.

Said the prime minister: "There are those who I know disagree with casino gaming. I genuinely respect their views. The fact is that the horse bolted through the gate a long time ago with the granting of licences for hundreds of gaming machines."

"What have not been permitted are table games. With improved technology, many slot machines now carry games which traditionally were exclusively table games, so what was intended to be excluded is very much here.

"Slot machines, however, do not attract major investments. Table games do," he added.

He said the Government had already secured agreements for major developments involving over 6,000 new hotel rooms and US$2.8 billion worth of investment.

The prime minister made it clear that casino licences would only be considered if certain conditions such as a minimum investment of US$1.5 billion and the construction of not less than 1,000 rooms are met.

In addition, he said the Government would have to be satisfied that the casino component would be no more than 20 per cent of the total project. Golding further said operators would have to be subject to the approval of the Government after the appropriate due diligence, including fit and proper tests and evaluation of track record. He said, too, that an appropriate regulatory framework with the necessary legislation and enforcement mechanism would have to be put in place.

"We will ensure that best practices are observed and that only reputable companies with proven integrity are allowed to operate in Jamaica," the prime minister said.

In the meantime, Golding said approval has been given to proposals from the developers of the Palmyra Resort and Spa, operating under the company Celebration Jamaica Limited, for a major new investment which is predicated on the granting of a casino licence.

The project, said Golding, involved the development of a 65-acre property consisting of 2,080 new hotel rooms and a total investment of US$1.8 billion.

Meanwhile, the Tavistock Group, developers of the Harmony Cove resort project, are to increase the size of the project from 4,500 rooms to 8,500 rooms with an additional investment of US$1 billion to US$2 billion, based on the undertaking that they will also be allowed to operate a casino.

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