<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Western </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/sydney" rel="" target="" title="Sydney"><span>Sydney</span></a><span> is the </span><a href="http://9news.com.au/pokies" rel="" target="" title="gaming"><span>gaming</span></a><span> capital of the country, and a damning report has exposed that it will take </span><a href="http://9news.com.au/new-south-wales" rel="" target="" title="NSW"><span>NSW</span></a><span> decades to cleanup the industry.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The state is home to more than half of the country's gaming machines, with 87,749 machines in our pubs and clubs - more than all the other states combined.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>NSW has triple the number, per 1000 adults, compared to Victoria.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/reserve-bank-westpac-predicts-four-rate-cuts-from-as-early-as-august/81dc9238-5569-4d60-a06d-22ba3a5ae044"><strong><span>Big four bank makes huge rate cut prediction</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Under current regulations, the auditor-general's office says it would take more than 55 years for NSW to bring that number back in line with other states.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The most used machines are in western Sydney, where 22 per cent of the state's profits are generated by just 10 per cent of the population.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Gaming losses are highest in Canterbury-Bankstown, Cumberland and Fairfield, where there is one machine for every 55 people.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/gambling-report-damning-report-reveals-depths-of-nsws-gambling-problem/18379f9d-6e42-4024-bd0f-8d9d264a4f0f" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Despite everybody's best effort to have cashless gaming rolled out across NSW gaming, it's largely proved to be ineffective," NSW Premier Chris Minns said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It hasn't worked, it's not driven down the problem gambling, the take-up rate has been lower than we thought, the cost of compliance is enormous." </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The report found that the government's regulation strategy is not based on a clear understanding of current levels of gambling harm, and doesn't effectively target problem gamblers.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The industry is worth $8.4 billion to pubs and clubs and brings in $2.3 billion in revenue for the government.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><strong><span>There are many different ways to get help and information about gambling. You can visit the National Gambling Helpline or call on 1800 858 858.</span></strong></em></div></div>