Minister for Racing Paul Toole has announced that the NSW Government will cap the number of EGMs in high-risk communities, including around the south-west suburb of Fairfield, as part of new gaming reforms to be introduced.
“A number of councils and community groups suggested caps and the NSW Government agrees this is the right thing to do in higher-risk areas. Local community caps are part of a package of reforms that represent the most significant changes to gambling regulation in NSW for a decade.
The Australian Hotels Association NSW (AHA NSW) is currently reviewing the reforms put to Parliament, but one initial takeaway is that the reforms will benefit country pubs who are struggling to stay afloat.
“Country pubs are the backbones of our regional communities, and many have been struggling with rising costs coupled with wider demographic changes,” states AHA NSW Director of Liquor and Policing John Green.
While noting that in the last two years alone almost 50 pubs in country New South Wales have closed, Green said that the leasing reform in particular will provide some relief for country pubs.
“Over recent years many country pubs have been forced to sell off their gaming assets when times got tough,” he said.
“Of course, they were only able to do this for as long as they had assets to sell. After the assets were sold, many were forced to close their doors.
AHA NSW now plans to analyse the legislation in more detail.
Minister Toole believes the new legislation the will overhaul the way gaming is regulated in the state, and better identify at-risk communities.