There was a complete shutdown of horse racing on Wednesday with all 4 scheduled conferences in Britain not going down in a protest over tax
British horse racing will go on strike on Wednesday (Picture: Getty Photographs)
Horse racing in Britain went ‘on strike’ on Wednesday in opposition to a authorities plan to extend betting duties. The 4 scheduled fixtures – Carlisle, Uttoxeter, Lingfield and Kempton – have all been postponed to later dates as a part of a present of solidarity for the ‘Axe the Racing Tax’ marketing campaign.
The federal government is weighing up a proposal to ‘harmonise’ on-line betting taxes, which might elevate the quantity of responsibility on racing and sports activities betting from 15 per cent to 21 per cent, aligning it with video games of likelihood like casinos and slot machines – a transfer racing leaders warn can be “an existential risk for our sport.” Right here, Specific Sport runs via all the small print.
The British racing trade has taken the unprecedented resolution to droop each deliberate assembly at present in an effort to dissuade the federal government from elevating the betting responsibility. The ‘Axe The Racing Tax’ initiative goals to spotlight the trade’s unity and guarantee its warning is clearly heard.
What’s the ‘Racing Tax’?
The federal government needs a ‘harmonisation’ of on-line betting taxes that might elevate responsibility on sports activities and racing bets from 15 per cent to 21 per cent, bringing it in keeping with different chance-based video games akin to slots and on line casino tables.
The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) needs the Treasury to scrap the deliberate enhance and as an alternative create a separate, decrease fee particularly for horse racing, reflecting its “large financial and cultural worth” to Britain.
Research commissioned by the BHA forecast that racing might lose £330million over 5 years if the plan goes forward. One other evaluation predicted greater than 2,700 jobs disappearing inside the first 12 months. Bookmakers may reply by slicing odds, doubtlessly pushing prospects towards totally different merchandise and even unlawful betting markets.
In at present’s Racing Submit:
On Wednesday, British racing goes darkish, and so has the Racing Submit entrance web page. In an unprecedented act of protest, the game has voluntarily cleared the schedule to sound the alarm over a feared authorities tax raid that threatens the game’s future pic.twitter.com/ZXJJ9ufpN6
— Racing Submit (@RacingPost) September 10, 2025
How vital is horse racing?
Racing is the nation’s second-largest spectator sport, attracting almost 5 million spectators yearly. It instantly employs round 85,000 individuals and generates £4.1billion for the financial system annually, together with about £300m in tax contributions.
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What motion has been taken?
The 4 fixtures initially scheduled for September 10 – Lingfield, Carlisle, Uttoxeter and Kempton – have all been shifted to later dates, leaving at present as a clean day within the calendar. A parliamentary occasion can also be being held in Westminster, with trainers, jockeys and MPs current. The speedy value of the cancellations is estimated at £200,000 in misplaced revenue.
Will any racing nonetheless be obtainable to observe?
Sure. In Eire, Cork phases a night assembly beginning at 4.10, whereas worldwide motion comes from Joyful Valley in Hong Kong and Compiegne in France earlier within the day.
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