Racing Tax: more than 3,000 emails sent to MPs

More than 3,000 emails have been sent to MPs – all outlining deep concerns about what a higher taxation would mean for horseracing.

Racing TV set up an online portal which enabled users to locate their local MP and email a template letter. The action comes on the back of the Government’s consultation on how the betting and gaming industry is taxed.

Nick Mills, CEO of Racecourse Media Group, said: “The ‘axe the racing tax’ campaign is hugely significant for the sport’s future. We set up the ‘www.emailyourmpnow.co.uk’ portal to make it as easy as possible for all those who care about the sport to email their MP.

“The fact that 3,000 emails have been sent to 615 of 650 MPs, which sit in Parliament, in just over 10 days shows the strength of opposition to the racing tax. We are calling on MPs to make their constituents’ deep concerns known to the Chancellor, DCMS and No.10.”

Horseracing is currently subject to a 15 per cent duty on gross profits. The campaign warns of the implications of any tax increase, but if horseracing, alongside other sports, were to be taxed at the same rate as other types of gambling at 21%, racing’s finances could be hit to the tune of £66 million in lost income, according to the British Horseracing Authority (BHA).

This is because operators are likely to seek to mitigate significant tax rises through cutting bonuses, reducing advertising and marketing budgets and offering less attractive odds.

They also might look to invest overseas instead, and there is a risk that punters may turn to the unregulated, unsafe black market, which doesn’t pay a penny in tax.

This would put thousands of jobs at risk and severely impact towns and rural communities across the country. It would also hamper British racing’s world-leading work on equine welfare.