Research commissioned by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has suggested that a single tax rate in the UK gambling sector could cost the horseracing industry £330m over a five-year period.
The Treasury concluded its initial consultation into the Remote Betting & Gaming Duty last week, which would seek to tax pools and general betting (online sports betting) at the same rate as online casino.
Under the current system, online sports betting and horseracing is taxed at 15%, while igaming is subject to a 21% tax rate.
It is expected that any new system would either see online sports betting taxed at 21% alongside igaming, or a new rate above 21% would be introduced across the board.
The research, carried out by Development Economics this month, estimated that such a change would cost the horseracing industry £66m a year for the first five years.
Furthermore, the governing body’s research also suggested that up to 2,752 people would be at risk of losing their job in the first year, with thousands more cuts expected after that.
Yorkshire was used as an example to highlight the scale of the issue, with the county home to nine racecourses, including Doncaster and York.
The area is projected to suffer a £37m revenue hit, with 342 jobs at immediate risk.
BHA CEO Brant Dunshea expressed his concern at the proposed tax increase, claiming horseracing already finds itself in a “precarious financial position”.
He said: “This latest tax bombshell from the government, if followed through, poses one of the gravest risks to horseracing the sport has ever seen.
“The horseracing industry is already in a precarious financial position, and the latest research provides a much more catastrophic forecast than we first thought.
“We’re talking thousands of jobs at risk across the supply chain, severely impacted towns and communities and the irreversible decline of the country’s second most popular sport.
“Together, as an entire industry, we’re asking the British public for support in calling on the government to rethink this policy and stop undermining a much-loved part of British heritage and culture. It’s time to axe the racing tax and back British horseracing.”
The BHA submitted its response to the consultation, calling for the government to give horseracing “individual treatment in the tax system”.
In addition to the BHA’s opposition, the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Racing and Bloodstock also claimed the single tax rate would be detrimental to horseracing, presenting its report entitled Securing Racing’s Future: The Threat to British Horseracing to the government last month.
The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) has also warned of the impact of the single tax rate, claiming it would result in two-thirds of UK bettors turning towards black-market operators.
Moreover, the BHA has augmented its ‘Axe The Racing Tax’ campaign with a petition for the public to sign.
The petition reads: “We call on the government to rethink this policy. Racing is already struggling. Taxing betting on horseracing any further will impact thousands of jobs and livelihoods and permanently undermine a much-loved part of British heritage and culture.
“If British horseracing is to survive and thrive, we need to #AxeTheRacingTax.”
The post New research claims tax increase could cost horseracing £330m over five years first appeared on EGR Intel.
British Horseracing Authority warns that more than 2,700 jobs would be at risk should the sport become subject to a 21% tax rate
The post New research claims tax increase could cost horseracing £330m over five years first appeared on EGR Intel.