Romania’s pro-European government has fallen after losing a vote of confidence, less than a year after the coalition took office and amid rising support for far-right parties in opinion polls. The Romanian Association of Slot Machine Operators (Romslot) has outlined what this means for the gambling industry.
The adoption of the no-confidence motion has opened a period of interim government. Romslot clarified that under the Constitution, an interim government can only manage current public affairs, meaning it cannot adopt emergency ordinances, which have been the main tool for significant changes in the gambling market.
It also cannot initiate draft laws or submit new legislative proposals to Parliament. The interim period is limited to a maximum of 45 days until a new government is sworn in.
This matters for the gambling sector because the industry is currently dealing with several key processes with fixed deadlines.
These include the renewal of Class I operator licences and authorisations issued in 2016, the implementation of the National Unified Self-Exclusion System, the launch of the “Conscious and Free” programme worth €5m ($5.9m) by regulator ONJN and the introduction of transitional rules for local licensing of gambling machines at council level.
Romslot said that despite the political uncertainty, ONJN, the Ministry of Finance and local authorities still have the tools to ensure the market continues to function.
It also called for this period to be used for structured consultation between ONJN, academia, mental health professionals, local authorities and industry stakeholders to develop more robust and sustainable policy proposals.
The association stressed that regulatory predictability is important for protecting players, ensuring operator compliance and safeguarding state budget revenues. However, recent developments have triggered fresh political instability.
In addition to deciding whether gambling halls are permitted, each Romanian Local Council can also set an annual local tax
