NSW Labor leader won’t commit to cashless gambling cards proposal

Chris Minns notes that the industry has said the proposal would be cost-prohibitive.

Australia.- Chris Minns, leader of the NSW Labor Party, has refused to commit to the proposal by the New South Wales Crime Commission (NSWCC) to introduce cashless gambling cards in the state. Prime minister Dominic Perrottet has agreed to study the proposal but promised to consult with the industry.

Minns noted that ClubsNSW has claimed that adopting the technology would cost AU$1.8bn and lead to thousands of job losses, but it hasn’t provided evidence to support that claim. Sydney independent MP Alex Greenwich has proposed changes to a bill on the use of facial recognition technology in clubs and pubs, but Minns has refused to back the amendment.

Minns said: “We need to make sure and look at what people are putting on the table before I give blanket support for a proposal that I haven’t seen.”

According to The Guardian, Greenwich stated: “It’s concerning that [both parties] are consulting with the bodies who have financial benefit from not taking action, who cause gambling harm and who want to turn a blind eye to the money laundering happening in clubs and pubs. It’s the equivalent of forming your drink-driving policies by consulting with the alcohol industry.”

The NSWCC has put pressure on politicians in a report that notes that approximately AU$95bn in cash flows through poker machines in pubs and clubs in NSW each year. 

See also: NSW starts testing cashless gaming at Wests Newcastle