Axe the Racing Tax

Wednesday was a dark day for British racing. Racing cancelled across the land while the sport's leaders made an empassioned stand in the country's seat of power against a proposed rise in betting tax, warning of plenty more dark days to come.  There can be no denying the intent with which the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has set about alerting the government as to the very real threat to Britain's second-biggest spectator sport. The outcome of a proposed 'harmonisation' of betting taxes, which could see the tax on horserace betting...

There will be no horseracing across the UK on Wednesday as part of an industry-wide attempt to persuade the British government of the potentially ruinous consequences of a proposed rise in betting tax. A hike from 15 per cent to 21 per cent has been suggested to bring betting on racing and other sports into line with the tax rate for online gaming and slots, but the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), along with the sport's other representative bodies, has warned of the devastating impact on racing's finances if this is...

In an extraordinary move by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), no race meetings will take place in Britain on Wednesday, September 10. The refusal to race is a protest at the British government's proposed tax rise on horserace betting, which, if approved, would bring it in line with betting on online gaming, pushing it up from 15 per cent to 21 per cent. This will be the first time that the sport has voluntarily refused to race in its modern history. The four meetings scheduled for that day will move...

The early part of last week was spent covering the JRHA Select Sale in Japan, a trip that is always illuminating, to an auction that remains extraordinary. Number one of the list of most surprising things from the five days spent in Hokkaido was Teruya Yoshida picking up his guitar to serenade guests with a rendition of John Denver's Take Me Home, Country Roads. An excellent choice of song, well performed. The Shadai Farm principal should be encouraged to form a Travelling Wilburys-style bloodstock supergroup. Bluegrass enthusiast and songwriter Arthur...

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has urged the sport to collectively lobby the Government to back British racing and axe a proposal from the Treasury which could hit racing's finances to the tune of £66m in lost income. Those figures were published by the BHA for the first time on Wednesday, highlighting the potentially catastrophic consequences of the proposal to hike tax on horserace betting by bringing existing online betting duties into one single rate. At a time when affordability checks and the lack of a sustainable central funding model...