British horseracing sector launches campaign against online gambling tax proposal
The British Horseracing Authority is rallying the sector to lobby against the UK government’s planned Remote Betting and Gaming Duty.
UK.- The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has joined the gambling sector in calling for the British government to ditch plans for a new unified Remote Betting and Gaming Duty (RBGD). With the slogan ‘Axe the Racing Tax’, it’s launched a campaign urging all horseracing stakeholders to collectively lobby the government agains the proposal to bring existing online betting duties into one single rate.
The government plans the integration of three separate tax categories – Remote Gaming Duty, General Betting Duty, and Pool Betting Duty – into one. The current Remote Gaming Duty, which covers online slots, poker, bingo and similar, is levied at 21 per cent of gross profits based on a place of consumption (POC) model.
General Betting Duty varies depending on vertical: fixed-odds betting is taxed at 15 per cent, sports spread betting at 10 per cent, and financial spread betting at 3 per cent. Pool Betting Duty is charged at 15 per cent on gross profits, applicable to sports pools only (excluding horse and greyhound racing).
Industry groups, including the Betting and Gaming Council argue that the change would mean a tax hike for many bookmakers in the Autumn Budget. The BHA says economic analysis it commissioned shows that aligning the current 15 per cent tax rate paid by bookmakers on racing with that of online games of chance – currently taxed at 21 per cent – by harmonising all remote gambling duties, could hit racing’s finances to the tune of £66m in lost income via the Levy, media rights and sponsorship.
It said this is because operators are likely to seek to mitigate significant tax rises through cutting bonuses, reducing advertising and marketing budgets and increasing prices. “Should the Treasury seek to raise the proposed single duty rate further to help balance the books, the impact on racing’s finances would be devastating, with a projected £97m loss at a tax rate of 25 per cent, a £126m loss at 30 per cent and a £160m loss at 40 per cent,” the body said.
It added: “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.”
The BHA is asking everyone involved in the sport to write to their local MP to call on ministers to urgently rethink proposals. Separately, the sport will be formally responding to the Treasury’s consultation on the proposals which closes on July 21. The Treasury will consider its options ahead of the Budget this Autumn.
The BHA has welcomed this week’s commitment by Treasury minister James Murray MP to work with the horseracing industry to avoid unintended consequences arising from the proposals and to seek mitigations.
It added that the proposals come at a time when there are already challenges to the industry’s finances due to affordability checks on online gambling and the lack of any progress on reviewing the betting levy.
Brant Dunshea, acting chief executive of the British Horseracing Authority, said: “It is vital that everyone working in racing, the media and bettors fully support and promote this campaign. The Government’s consultation on harmonising online betting duties, if followed through, poses one of the gravest risks to racing the sport has ever seen.
“It will punch a huge hole in racing’s finances, risk thousands of jobs across Britain and threaten the future of the country’s second most-popular sport and a cherished national institution. From now until the Budget we will be hammering home a very simple message to MPs, Peers and the Government on behalf of millions of racing fans. It’s time for the Government to back British racing and axe the racing tax.”
