The Minns government in NSW has changed tack on its bid to remove 9,500 EGMs from the state’s venues, on the basis of following evidence-based policy that “gets the balance right”.
In the pre-election fervour of 2023 Labor outlined a plan to remove the machines over five years, via a buyback scheme and revised system of forfeiture.
But in a recent parliamentary hearing Gaming Minister David Harris conceded they no longer support this approach, in light of evidence indicating that in terms of gambling harm the number of machines is not as important as the intensity of play.
This decision was influenced by the findings from an independent panel comprised of a range of interests, populated by the AHA, Clubs NSW, the Gaming Technologies Association, as well as academics, unions and social services representatives.
The panel concluded the proposed initiative would be expensive and would not deliver meaningful results.
“A buyback scheme will be costly, estimated to be at least $60 million, and not likely to impact gaming machine numbers in a significant way,” said the report.
Instead, the panel offered that a buyback system should be voluntary, and available to all clubs and hotels in NSW.
Minister Harris posed that the funds could instead be directed toward other harm minimisation strategies.
Prior to the election, reducing the number of machines in NSW venues was touted as a key policy in the debate, as the former LNP Premier made clear his intention to make gambling a cornerstone election issue.
Labor’s rethinking of the buyback scheme has in turn been criticised by the opposition, with shadow minister for gaming Kevin Anderson politicking that the government has broken a key promise.
Questioned on the change, the incumbent government readily pointed to the latest in a suite of reforms to regulate the industry, which have included new requirements from 1 January for ATMs to be at least five metres and not visible from the entry to a gaming room, and the banning of gambling advertising from public transport.
In February 2025 government released for public consultation the Third-Party Exclusion Consultation Paper and Facial Recognition Technology in Pubs and Clubs Consultation Paper. Submissions close 28 March.
“The NSW Government is committed to addressing gambling harm through evidence-based policy that gets the balance right,” a spokesperson for the NSW Government told PubTIC.
“We are working with all stakeholders to deliver gambling reform that protects people’s privacy, reduces harm, stops money laundering and supports local communities and jobs.”
A $100 million commitment to harm minimisation, spanning research, treatment, services and reform, has already introduced:
- A reduction in the statewide gaming machine entitlement cap (June 2023)
- Banning political donations from clubs with EGMs (July 2023)
- Reducing the cash input limit on new gaming machines from $5,000 to $500 (July 2023)
- Banning all external gambling signage in venues (September 2023)
- Responsible Gambling Officers for venues with more than 20 EGM entitlements (July 2024)
- Mandate that all venues with gaming machines keep a Gaming Plan of Management and a Gambling Incident Register
- An independent panel to conduct a trial of cashless gaming in hotels and clubs throughout 2024
