Politicians should accept "reasonable societal norms" and ban the burka, according to a New South Wales Government backbencher.

The Member for Davidson, Jonathan O'Dea, said the Islamic dress should not be worn in public and police should be given powers to enforce its removal.

He said political leaders had tried to be too politically correct and he was confident of public support for the move.

"Most normal reasonable people would support the thinking that I'm putting forward," Mr O'Dea said.

"I think that there is an apprehension from political and other leaders not to be seen to be religiously or racially intolerant.

"But the position I'm putting is not that it's about preserving a civility in our society."

Mr O'Dea said his stance was not racially discriminatory because it would be extended to masks and helmets.

"Unless mainstream political parties respect what are are commonly acceptable and reasonable societal norms then it gives space for people like Pauline Hanson to capitalise and play on racial or religious bigotry," he said.

Stephen Blanks from the New South Wales Council for Civil Liberties said the Premier Gladys Berejiklian should dismiss the calls.

"We really have to think carefully about who in society we want to criminalise [and] subject to the force of the police and the court system," he said.

"We could criminalise all sorts of things some people find annoying. But when you think about it, it just doesn't work for society to do that.

"We have to have a level of tolerance, we have to have a level of restraint."

