The authorities announced a decree law by which gambling establishments must be more than 300 meters away from educational institutions. The measure is retroactive to January 1, 2024.
Spain.- The Ministry of Presidency, Public Administrations, Justice and Security of the Government of the Canary Islands published, in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands (BOC), a decree law with urgent measures to correct the situation generated by a judicial ruling that allows the installation of gaming halls less than 300 meters from early childhood and primary education centers, once the moratorium in the gaming sector ends on December 31, 2023.
This set of measures aims to ensure the protection of children in the field of gambling and betting activities through Decree Law 7/2024, dated July 31. The Government of the Canary Islands maintains that the decree law allows for increased speed and correction of the situation generated. “The goal is twofold: on one hand, to protect minors from the age of 6, and on the other, to prevent the concentration of gaming venues, by including limitations on the installation of bingos between halls,” explains the area's councilor, Nieves Lady Barreto, who clarifies that the published rule will have retroactive effects to January 1, 2024.
The seventh final provision of the Decree Law modifies Law 8/2010, of July 15, on Games and Betting to regulate the area of influence in which establishments for the practice of gaming cannot be located due to the prior existence of an educational center or a permanent center for child care.
The prohibition will also extend to bars, cafeterias, or similar establishments located in the said area of influence that do not have gaming as their main activity.
For these purposes, educational centers and child care centers are considered those that are registered as such in the official registers of the corresponding Administration and whose potential users are between the ages of 6 and 17, inclusive.
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The Decree Law also introduces the prohibition of installing recreational and gaming halls within a radius of 200 meters from another similar hall, measured in a straight line from the access doors. This restriction also applies to the distance between recreational halls and bingo halls, with some exceptions for those establishments already authorized before the entry into force of the norm.
