Liquor and Gaming NSW says a month-long compliance blitz aimed at discovering whether licensed pubs and clubs are complying with a recent ban on external gambling-related signage has found that 99% of venues are compliant.
According to details made public on Friday, the regulator inspected more than 1,100 venues across 35 metropolitan and eight regional Local Government Areas (LGAs), representing over 50% of all venues in NSW with an entitlement to hold gaming machines. Of these, 16 venues were still displaying prohibited external signage in contravention of the ban that came into effect on 1 September 2023.
Inspectors are currently assessing the instances of prohibited signage identified during the blitz to determine the cause of delay in removing the signage, Liquor and Gaming NSW said, with those venues unable to produce clear evidence that the delays were caused by factors outside of their control facing fines.
It added that some venues were found to have put in place signage that appears to be an attempt to circumvent the restrictions. These also face fines of up to AU$11,000 per offence.
“Removing this signage for pubs and clubs is just one part of our commitment to reducing gambling harm in our community and I thank licensees and industry bodies for getting on board,” said NSW Minister for Gaming and Racing, David Harris.
“We have been working positively and proactively with industry associations and venues across the state to educate, inform and support them through this process and ensure this high level of compliance.
“We welcome the positive impact this campaign has had on the exteriors of licensed venues which now solely feature advertisements for a diverse range of offerings such as food and beverage specials, live music and entertainment instead of signs designed to advertise the presence of gaming machines. It makes a noticeable difference to the amenity of our cities and suburbs.”
The ban on external gambling-related signage is one of a raft of measures introduced by the NSW Government in recent months with a view to reducing gambling harm, including reducing the cash input limit from AU$5,000 to AU$500 for all new electronic gaming machines from 1 July 2023, capping the number of gaming machine entitlements in circulation, banning political donations from clubs involved in gaming, introducing Responsible Gaming Officers at venues with more than 20 machines, expanding a third-party exclusion register to the whole state, and establishing an independent panel of expert stakeholders to oversee cashless gaming trials and recommend an implementation roadmap for gaming reforms.
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