Xenophon calls for public vote on pokies

Independent senator Nick Xenophon believes a plebiscite should be held on poker machines, saying Australians are smart enough to vote on multiple issues.

Independent senator Nick Xenophon is calling for a plebiscite on poker machines to be held alongside a public vote on same-sex marriage.

Senator Xenophon, who has long called for poker machine reform, believes if the government can promise a public vote on same-sex marriage, it can also go to the people on the pokies.

"Australian are smart enough to vote on more than one issue," he told reporters in Adelaide on Sunday.