In a dramatic escalation of its campaign against proposed tax changes, British Horseracing will halt all racing for a full day on Wednesday, 10 September. The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) confirmed that the four meetings scheduled for that day will be cancelled in what it described as an “unprecedented decision” for the sport in its modern history.
The strike action is designed to highlight the “serious consequences” of the government’s tax proposals. On the same day, senior racing leaders, owners, trainers, and jockeys will travel to Westminster for a major campaign event to lobby lawmakers directly.
The protest centres on the UK Treasury’s proposal to consolidate the three different rates of online gambling tax into a single, unified rate. The racing industry fears this will mean the current 15% General Betting Duty (GBD) applied to profits from horseracing bets will be increased to align with the 21% Remote Gaming Duty (RGD) applied to online casino games.
The BHA has warned that such a hike would be “catastrophic for the sport.” It has published research projecting that the change could cost the racing industry £330 million ($447m) in the first five years and lead to the loss of up to 2,752 jobs in the first year alone. “British Racing is already in a precarious financial position,” said BHA CEO Brant Dunshea. “We are urging the government to rethink this tax proposal to protect the future of our sport.”
However, the decision to strike has created a significant and public rift with the betting industry. The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), which represents UK-licensed bookmakers, issued a sharp rebuke of the plan, noting that it was made without consulting operators whose funding is “mission critical” to the sport.
“We are concerned that futile political gestures will only antagonise the government and frustrate punters instead of delivering a solution to a shared challenge,” the BGC stated, signalling a major disagreement on strategy.
Despite the lack of support from the bookmakers, the racing industry itself is presenting a unified front. The strike action has been publicly endorsed by the UK’s largest racecourse groups. Jim Mullen, CEO at The Jockey Club, said he hoped the “pause for reflection will enable the government to truly understand the economic impact of horse racing.”
Martin Cruddace, CEO of Arena Racing Company, was more direct: “If the government wants Britain to be a world leader in online casino and a world pauper in a sport at the heart of its culture, then tax harmonisation will achieve that aim.”
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