A temporary ban on pubs and clubs from transferring poker machines between venues should be considered by the state government while the reasons for an increase in poorer areas is investigated, a NSW parliamentary inquiry has recommended.
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The Select Committee on the Impact of Gambling also found that a daily cash withdrawal limit should be placed on automatic teller machines in venues with poker machines and other forms of electronic gambling.
The inquiry was established at the request of Christian Democratic Party MP Fred Nile shortly after the NSW government agreed to give billionaire James Packer permission to operate a casino, which will not have poker machines, at Barangaroo in central Sydney.
Its final report, tabled in the NSW parliament on Thursday, makes 18 recommendations "all aimed at minimising the negative aspects of problem gambling", said Reverend Nile, who chaired the committee.
There are 96,000 electronic gaming machines in NSW, which include poker machines and electronic casino-style games such as roulette.
The committee said that in 2012-13 in NSW losses on electronic gaming machines amounted to $5.25 billion. The loss figure for all forms of gambling was $7.92 billion.
The committee's main recommendation is that an independent review be carried out on the rules for determining whether new poker machines should be allowed into a venue, known as the Local Impact Assessment process.
The process, run by the Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing, takes into account the socio-economic status of a local government area and the potential harm additional machines could cause.
The inquiry heard concerns that the process did not give enough weight to the potential harm from poker machines. Its report "notes with concern that electronic gaming machines are increasingly located disproportionately in lower socioeconomic areas".
It said the assessment process "has in many cases failed to protect the local community and would benefit from an independent review".
While the review is conducted the NSW government should "give consideration" to a freeze on the transfer of poker machines between venues and on the creation of any new poker machine entitlements.
Responding to the recommendation Greens MP John Kaye, a committee member, said: "The myth that the Local Impact Assessment process and entitlement forfeitures is working has been blown apart."
The inquiry report noted that the Productivity Commission research says problem gamblers have identified the location of automatic teller machines as "a key harm minimisation measure".
The NSW division of the Australian Hotels Association argued that the harm minimisation impact of restrictions on ATMs were not supported by evidence and would inconvenience other patrons.
Clubs NSW questioned the link between ATM access and increased gambling, citing the Tasmanian experience where ATMs are banned yet the state has a higher problem gambling prevalence than NSW.
But the committee believed "an argument can still be made in support of reducing access to cash in and around gaming venues to limit the opportunity for unplanned gambling expenditure". It recommended the government review the existing cash limit.
