Article 106 of the Federal Constitution and the Gambling Act stipulate that the net income of lottery companies and casinos be used for culture, social projects and sport, and for the OASI. The public adopted a corresponding article in March 2012 with 87% voting in favour.
The central focus was, of course, that such profits genuinely be used for worthwhile charitable causes. Around CHF 1 billion is currently available annually for these purposes. If these resources from legal gambling are to be secured for art and culture, the growing illegal gambling trade needs to be halted, as the new Gambling Act intends.
Today, the use of gambling profits for cultural projects improves conditions for all artists: many events are only made possible thanks to substantial contributions from lottery funds. Without this support, many performances, concerts, audiovisual projects and exhibitions would not receive sufficient financial support, and many artists would be unable to practise their art.
Illegal and offshore online gambling undermines this support: its profits are not collected and are not available to fund social projects, sport or culture.
