Comments bringing religion into a debate about cashless pokies have been quickly withdrawn after the NSW premier labelled them “offensive” to all people of faith.

As the government and the state’s club industry face off over a mandatory cashless gaming card, ClubsNSW chief executive Josh Landis said Dominic Perrottet had “acted from his conservative Catholic gut” on the issue.

The remark drew a visceral response from the premier.

“It is incredibly inappropriate and offensive to people of faith right across NSW,” Mr Perrottet said on Tuesday.

“(The comments) are an attack on every single person of faith in our state.

“We live in a tolerant state, a tolerant country, and there is no place for comments like that in a modern Australia.”

Making the same comment about Islamic, Jewish or Hindu faiths would result in a resignation, the premier said earlier on Sydney radio 2GB.

Mr Landis had commented on Mr Perrottet’s commitment to mandate cashless gaming for poker machines.

“I think it’s fair to say that the premier has very little understanding of this issue and has acted from his conservative Catholic gut, rather than based on evidence,” Mr Landis said in the Sydney Morning Herald on Tuesday.

Mr Landis reflected on his “stuff-up” and withdrew the comments by 10am.

“I misspoke – it wasn’t premeditated,” he said, in a statement to 2GB.

“I shouldn’t have entertained the question (from the Herald reporter) or said what I said.”

Before the apology, kingmaker independent MP Alex Greenwich, who has been critical of ClubsNSW, said Mr Landis’s position as chief executive was “beyond untenable”.

“It’s time for him to go,” he said.

“I’ve had my policy disputes with the premier on social reforms, but I would never attack him because of his faith.”

Problem gambling has become a hot-button issue ahead of the March 25 state election, with political parties under pressure to introduce cashless gaming after a NSW Crime Commission report found billions of dollars in dirty money was being laundered through machines every year.

ClubsNSW released a code of conduct on Monday offering a swathe of reforms to the industry, including a ban on suspected criminals, in a bid to avert the introduction of mandatory cashless gaming cards.

However, Mr Perrottet doubled down on his commitment to introduce cashless gaming cards, saying the government’s response to the commission report would be released “shortly”.

Labor says it will cut the number of poker machines and introduce a cashless gaming trial on 500 of the state’s 90,000 machines.