Prague City Hall to propose complete ban on slot machine gambling

The Council of Prague City Hall is set to vote at the end of August on a complete ban on slot machines in the Czech capital. If the proposal passes, it could be put to the vote in the city’s assemply on September 10. The reason for the possible complete ban is that the Office for the Protection of Competition has refused the City Hall proposal to make an exemption to the ban in some municipal districts, Councillor Hana Marvanová told the Czech News Agency on Friday.

The anti-trust authority defended its decision on the basis that exempting certain parts of the city from the ban would be an unfair intervention into fair market competition. Ms. Marvanová  said that seven to eight districts, including the tourist hub of Prague 1, had originally been exempted from the ban by City Hall. Now the proposed ban will have to include all districts of the Czech capital.