The ex-prime minister has called on government officials to consider taking the hotel/casino complex off-shore. Image: geograph.org.au

James Packer’s six-star hotel Barangaroo casino proposal will likely move into the so-called “detailed consideration” next week, Labor’s shadow cabinet approving the project Tuesday, but former prime minister Paul Keating wants it built on water.

Mr Keating urged the government to reconsider the decision to build the property on solid ground, saying it would be better off built off-shore so it becomes an iconic landmark, The Daily Telegraph reported.

"The people who have caused the hotel to go on land and for it to be larger were the people who ran the campaign against the hotel in the water,” Mr Keating said.

"They certainly caused a hotel to be bigger and brassier on the land than it would have been in the water."

The pitch for the hotel and casino facility became a recurring topic of discussion this year when James Packer’s Crown Limited signed an exclusive deal agreement with Lend Lease to develop plans for a new hotel complex at Barangaroo on Sydney Harbour.

The media tycoon claimed it would help Australia “get the tourism growth” it deserves by tapping into the growing Chinese gambling market.

Tourism and Transport Forum (TTF) chief executive John Lee concurred, adding that the new hotel/casino complex would appeal to Australia’s growing Asia market, who, he claims, “love a bet and love to stay in world-class luxury hotels”.

“We believe the forecast growth in international arrivals from Asia will be sufficient to support the successful operation of two casinos in Sydney,” Mr Lee explained.

According to the TTF, Australia is expected to welcome up to one million Chinese visitors a year by 2020. 

The fate of the project will likely be decided at the next cabinet meeting to be held on 5 November this year.