Netherlands rejects online gambling bill - PokerListings.com

The upper house of the Dutch parliament voted against a bill to allow Holland Casino to open a gambling Web site on a trial basis in the Netherlands.

Holland Casino has the monopoly on gambling in the Netherlands and would have been allowed a three-year contract to run an online gambling site if the bill was approved.

Justice Minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin wanted to give the state's gambling monopoly that right in an effort to head-off foreign competition, according to a Dutch News article.

Some 400,000 Dutch nationals are thought to indulge in online gambling at international sites such as PartyPoker, Bwin and Sportingbet.

The lower house of the Dutch parliament approved the bin in 2006, but the upper house voted 35-37 to defeat the bill on Tuesday.

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