Government's plan for betting tax will kill racing, warn sport's chiefs
At a time when racing is split over how the sport will be governed in the future, the differing factions have come together to fight a proposal by the government to harmonise the tax paid by betting firms.
Online betting on horse or dog races — or other sports for that matter — carries a 15 per cent rate of duty, compared with 21 per cent for online casinos. The Treasury is proposing that should be harmonised — with the expectation that the rate would be at least 21 per cent across the board.
The British Horseracing Authority is planning to launch a campaign opposing this next week, on the eve of Glorious Goodwood, while other parts of the sport are also up in arms, claiming it will affect the already precarious health of racing.
Jim Mullen, the chief executive of The Jockey Club, said an increase in the betting duty for gambling on racing would cost the sport tens of millions of pounds and hundreds of jobs. The consultation period for the proposal ended this week and the Treasury has been left in no doubt about the feelings of most involved in the sport.
Mullen told The Times: 'This is one of the rare occasions where all the different parts of racing have come together — it impacts all of us and we are all saying the same thing.
'This could cost the industry £66million a year. It will be harder for bookmakers to invest in the sport via prize money and sponsorship, and it will affect the levy on gambling on racing that goes back into the sport. They are already running on low margins and once they cut their costs it will mean a minimum of 1,000 jobs leaving the industry.
'The Treasury needs to understand this is an existential threat to the second-most attended sport in the UK. We are saying to them, 'Please look at this and understand the details.' We don't believe we deserve this.'
One person who has not been able to take a leading role in the campaign is Charles Allen, the businessman and peer who was due to take up the position as chairman of the BHA on June 1 but has delayed doing so while some factions in racing oppose his plans to make the organisation's board fully independent.
Lord Allen, the chairman of Balfour Beatty who was previously on the board of the London 2012 Olympics, has proposed radical changes to make its governance fully independent of racecourses and participants, including the Racecourse Association, the Racehorse Owners Association, the Thoroughbred Breeders' Association and 'licensed personnel' — jockeys and trainers.
Allen is understood to be still deciding whether to take up the role, but the Jockey Club has come out in full support of his proposals.
Mullen added: 'Without a strong regulator it's not possible for any sport to thrive and that's why we are fully supportive of Lord Allen's proposals for a fully independent BHA board.
'There are still details on certain issues which will need to be thrashed out in time and to expect everyone to agree on everything would be unrealistic at best, a potential barrier to meaningful change at worst.
'We recognise that ownership of media rights and fixtures are extremely important to the profitably of racecourses and that's where we are aligned with small and large independent courses and RCA [Racecourse Association] members.
'However, we don't believe that those views are incompatible with our strongly held opinion that British racing requires a fully independent regulator which is empowered to drive change, not only to benefit the sport now but for generations to come.
'Ultimately, whether Lord Allen takes up his role or not, a process has started which we think has the very real potential to create a stronger regulatory body.'
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