The British Beer & Pub Association's (BBPA) response to the Budd Report suggests that four machines, rather than two, should be the limit for new licences.
It backs that with research that shows 71 per cent of adults think four is reasonable, bearing in mind the fact that high street superpubs cover thousands of square feet and can extend over more than one floor.
Currently, 18 per cent of licensed premises have more than two machines, equivalent to about 10,000 pubs for which any new limit would prove critical.
While the BBPA and British Amusement Catering Trades Association are grateful for the recent jackpot increase to £25 for pub machines, the Budd Report recommends that the figure is inflation-linked for future years.
The machine industry argues that this will not only leave it at a disadvantage in the marketplace but be practically impossible to implement. At the present rate of inflation it will take 10 years before jackpots could be increased to £30.
Social responsibility towards the 0.6 to 0.8 per cent of the population who have a gambling problem is the positive side of the industry's case.
The machine manufacturers and others recently established the Gambling Industry Charitable Trust which is keen for publicans to get involved. It has already raised nearly £800,000 for Gam Care, an organisation which researches the problem and provides assistance for individuals.
While Richard Caborn and the DCMS deliberate over the legislation, Rolf Nielsen of Kunick is encouraging licensees to take the debate to their local MP. He has already had a successful meeting himself with Leeds MP Paul Truswell at the company's offices.
"He saw the logic of our argument and he went away better informed to discuss the Budd Report when it gets to Parliament," said Rolf.
"We are asking all publicans to do the same."