Tim Bonner: Threats to racing and the countryside

Last Friday the Alliance was at Cheltenham, the home of National Hunt racing, for its annual Countryside Day. As ever, the day was a great gathering of our supporters and it was wonderful to see the Bicester with Whaddon Chase hounds and the RAC Beagles in the parade ring and starring on ITV Racing. There was also a parade of hunt staff and Olympic equestrians on the course which was very popular with racegoers. The Alliance has been involved with the first day of the November meeting for as long as anyone can remember, but Cheltenham - like the rest of the racing industry - is feeling under greater threat than it has in all that time.

Not only is horse racing, like every other activity involving animals, having to address the challenges of changing attitudes towards animal use and welfare, but it is also facing a completely unnecessary attack on betting, which provides the economic injection that sustains the industry. The Gambling Commission has proposed “affordability checks” for online gambling sites, including bookmakers, which would see initial checks for anyone who loses £125 in 30 days or £500 in a year and more intrusive checks on bank accounts and payslips for anyone who loses £1,000 in a day, whilst their accounts are locked. Problem gambling is a serious issue amongst a small number of gamblers, but it is more likely to be associated with other forms of online gambling than it is with betting on horses or greyhounds. Nobody is suggesting that there should not be measures to stop problem gambling, but industry assessments suggest that the Gambling Commission proposals could take hundreds of millions of pounds out of the legitimate betting market and encourage illegal gambling. This, in turn, would have a crucial impact on the slice of betting revenue from legal, regulated betting firms which is one of racing’s key income streams.

This matters to the countryside because horse racing is both a big business which is a huge contributor to the rural economy and a social hub for many rural communities. From your local hunt’s point-to-point to the Cheltenham Festival, racing brings people together and supports tens of thousands of jobs in the countryside. That is why anyone who cares about the countryside should sign the parliamentary petition created by Jockey Club Chief Executive, Nevin Truesdale, calling on the Government to abandon the implementation of the affordability checks.

The petition has already attracted over 90,000 signatures and if it reaches 100,000 the Petitions Committee will have to consider a debate on the issue in the House of Commons. By helping the racing industry to reach this target we will be creating an opportunity for MPs to raise all the consequences of the current proposals in a forum where Ministers will have to take note. For the sake of racing and the countryside, please add your name.