Caribbean360: Bermuda going full tilt for gambling

Bermuda going full tilt for gambling
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Chris Hoyos on 24/11/2011 10:13:00
 
HAMILTON, Bermuda, Thursday, November 24, 2011 – A public referendum could be
coming in Bermuda on liberalising the country’s gaming laws.
This was announced by Minister of Tourism and Business Development Wayne Furbert
as he disclosed recently that the when the Bermuda Tourism Board was formulating
the forthcoming National Tourism Plan, schedule to be released in early 2012, it
had identified casino gambling as a strategic imperative for resuscitating the
island’s hospitality industry.
“Through its research the board identified gaming as a potential benefit to
the success of the tourism industry. In this vein, the Ministry will consider
holding a referendum on whether Bermuda should allow gaming,” said Furbert.
The Minister has previously said that while he personally opposes the
introduction of casino gambling to Bermuda, he believes the final decision on
the subject should be made by the Bermudian people rather than Government.
According to the 2010 the Green Paper on the subject, gambling would add nearly
3,000 jobs and up to $146 million a year to Bermuda’s economy.
The release of the Green Paper was followed by a debate on gaming in the House
of Assembly, with only a handful of Bermuda’s 36 Parliamentarians speaking in
favour of relaxing the anti-gaming laws.
The only MPs to speak in favour were then-Premier Dr Ewart Brown, Zane DeSilva,
Walter Lister, Michael Weeks, Mark Pettingill, Shawn Crockwell and Darius
Tucker.
Furbert also announced during the briefing that the island’s tourism branding
would be undergoing a makeover in the coming months.
“After discussions with many stakeholder groups, the board also identified
that the question of branding needs to be addressed,” he said. “The topic of
branding is labelled as a key ‘Hot Button’, requiring immediate attention.
“The board recommended that the brand must clearly identify Bermuda in order
to raise awareness and that it must be supported by brand promises that our
visitors will buy into and most importantly, experience once on island.”
“To this end, in the near future, the Ministry will be issuing an open Request
for Proposal for Bermudian advertising agencies, especially, to submit their
best creative ideas for a new brand and campaign creative concepts for the
destination. It is essential that the Company appointed fully understands
Bermuda’s target audience and relates a robust, timeless campaign to support
the brand,” he said.
“It is essential that the Company appointed fully understands Bermuda’s
target audience and relates a robust, timeless campaign to support the brand,”
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