Paf proposal to tighten gambling policy in Sweden
During an event organized by Paf in the Almedalen political week, the casino of Finnish origin did not think of anything else but to issue an order to the participating politicians and put on the table a reform of gambling policy in the Scandinavian country. The Almedalsveckan it is one of the most important political-festive events in Sweden, inspired by the impromptu rallies of the charismatic Olaf Palme.
During the Almedalen political week, the Paf online casino has proposed a total ban on gambling advertising in Sweden. ©Claudio Schwarz/Unsplash
At the present time we miss a figure of the political draft of Olof Palme . His impromptu rallies in Visby, Gotland, where he was spending the holidays resulted in Almedalen's political week , park of the aforementioned Swedish town, which takes place regularly at the beginning of July.
This year in Almedalen the managers of the Paf online casino did not want to go unnoticed and organized a very special event. Low slogan "The industry we love to hate” Paf put on the table the gambling policy in the Scandinavian country, the regulation of which came into force in January 2019.
Paf enters when the others leave
There is no casino like Paf. This is one of the most peculiar gaming companies. Regulated in more than 30 countries, including New Zealand, and with more than 400 employees, his leitmotif is responsible gambling and ecological sustainability . Founded in 1966, the profits generated are dedicated entirely to social work. There is no doubt that Paf wants to be different and make a difference.
Under these premises the proposal of Paf during the Almedalsveckan perhaps it will surprise less. Paf proposed discuss the current gambling legislation in Sweden which is of relatively recent date. It is not the first time that the Swedish regulation has been called into question , although what was at issue in Visby was to resume a constructive debate with the politicians present there.
The general feeling was one of moderate satisfaction with a legislation which, notwithstanding, it could be revised in the future . Is as good as the one that more , this is how the opinion of the politicians present in Visby could be summed up.
But the online casino has a very different idea of what the legislation should bring. According to Christer Fahlstedt, CEO of Paf, the problem of the bad reputation of gambling has a lot to do with the type of advertising allowed to operators. His proposal is simple: it consists of ban gambling ads on television and in public spaces , as well as any form of sponsorship. A measure that has been implemented in New Zealand in part and that he brought cola leaving the companies in the sector quite moody.
Paf's proposal is radical and poses many challenges . While there are still those who think that certain forms of advertising such as lotteries are harmless, Paf does not share it. Fahlstedt draws a parallel with alcohol: it would be absurd to sell beer light an alcoholic. The game is game.
Fahlstedt is aware of what other legislations have achieved in Europe and advocates that Sweden follow the same steps. Anticipating the loss of income that the restriction of advertising could entail, for example, in the sport that lives on sponsorships, as was common currency until not so long ago in our country, the CEO of Paf raises the need to raising the current tax burden in Sweden .
The Scandinavian country provides for an 18% tax on gross gambling winnings. The idea is to get to 21% , which would not have been welcomed with much enthusiasm. In EU countries the tax calculation can be very different with models based on turnover, net profits and even with differences according to the gaming verticals. In New Zealand the tax rate is 20% (10% for those operators located in Ceuta or Melilla).
We have seen that in Peru the law of the game that it has just been approved it foresees a tax burden of 12% on net profits, despite the fact that there was a proposal that finally did not go ahead and that contemplated 20%. In Colombia the tax on gross profits is 15% to which we must add an additional 1% that will equip Coljuegos.
Responsible gambling
Another of the measures that have been proposed from Paf is strengthen the competences of the self-exclusion portal Spelpaus so that it works in a preventive way and centralizes the limits to the players so that they are applied equally in all operators. In this regard, we cannot fail to point out the need for that the EU once and for all unifies prevention and control policies of the disorders derived from the game.
It is still curious that it is an operator who wants stricter regulation. But in the case of Paf it makes some sense. This is a casino that plays by other rules, rules that emphasize responsibility and sustainability. Marketing expenses on ads and sponsorships is not something that takes away from Paf sleep .
