New casinos to lure Asian tourists to Queensland

Premier Campbell Newman has called for expressions of interest for a second Brisbane casino as part of a redevelopment of the government precinct.

He says Macau's gambling houses and Singapore's iconic Marina Bay Sands casino wowed him on a recent tour of Asia.

Mr Newman is convinced that building a mega resort style-casino, and potentially another two in other parts of the state, is the best way to compete with other Asian destinations.

"Our offering has been rundown and eroded," Mr Newman said on Monday.

"We're not just looking for a hotel and some shops. It's a world class iconic precinct".

Mr Newman said the casino would include a new six star hotel, retail, restaurant and entertainment zones, theatre and convention facilities and new open spaces.

He said there could be another two new casinos built in other areas of the state, adding to the existing four.

"So you could see seven (casinos) in total in Queensland, up to seven," he said.

But Salvation Army problem gambling spokesman Gerrard Byrne warned there were already too many casinos in Queensland.

He said it seemed that the government had run out of ideas to make money and attract tourists.

"We think it's too much," Mr Byrne told AAP.

"There's really quite a proliferation of casinos and it's not just about the venues, it's about the concentration of poker machines, which are used by vulnerable members of the community.

"There are other, better ways of attracting tourists and getting them to spend their dollars.

"Queensland is great state with many different natural and man made attracts, there are better ways to make money."

Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney said the government would release a new draft casino policy when the EOI for the government precinct was released.

The policy would consider issues such as a market capacity, implications of additional licences on existing and future operations, financial implications for the state, community interests and social implications.