'It would be disastrous' - Classic-winning trainers Andrew Balding and Roger Varian call on sport to unify against the 'racing tax'

Andrew Balding has urged everyone in British racing to warn politicians about the dangers of the ‘racing tax’, as his local MP backed the “campaign to axe this misguided change”.

Kit Malthouse, Conservative MP for North West Hampshire and a former cabinet member under three prime ministers, said he had heard directly from Balding and other constituents about the “real risks this proposed tax change poses”.

Raising the tax rate on online sports betting under Treasury proposals to harmonise remote gambling duties could cost British racing at least £66 million a year in lost income, the BHA has warned.

Last week, it launched the 'Axe the Racing Tax' campaign to generate public engagement with MPs and to boost awareness in Westminster of the potential for significant damage to livelihoods.

Malthouse said: “Horseracing is a vital part of our national sporting and rural heritage, and it plays a significant economic and social role in constituencies like mine. I’ve heard directly from Andrew Balding and others about the real risks this proposed tax change poses, not just to the racing industry but to the livelihoods and communities that depend on it. 

“The Treasury’s plan to harmonise betting taxes may look tidy on paper, but it ignores the fundamental differences between horseracing and other forms of gambling. Racing isn’t a casino game; it’s a complex ecosystem that relies on a fair funding model to survive.

“I will be raising this directly with Treasury ministers and making the case in parliament that horseracing needs tailored support, not a one-size-fits-all tax regime. I support the campaign to axe this misguided change and will do all I can to ensure racing’s voice is heard at the highest levels.”

Kit Malthouse, Conservative MP for North West Hampshire

The threats posed by the ‘racing tax’ were spelled out by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Racing and Bloodstock in a report published last month, which said the sport was at a “tipping point”, while last week Kemi Badenoch MP, the leader of the opposition, attended a racing policy conference in Newmarket where she urged the Treasury “to do more thinking” on its proposals.

The consultation runs until July 21, and Balding said: “I've written a letter to my local MP, who has been to visit our yard and is very pro-racing and is aware of our issues and concerns. I think everyone has got a responsibility to communicate with their MP and we've done that. It's a collective effort. 

“We employ 90-plus people on a full-time basis, we're big employers in the area and our MP is very aware of that. Other people should be making their MPs aware of how many people are exactly involved behind the scenes in the sport. It could affect everybody.”

Newmarket trainers John Gosden, Stuart Williams and Michael Bell have spoken out against the 'racing tax' and Roger Varian, who also attended Friday's policy conference, believes it is vital that the industry comes together on the issue. 

A single Remote Betting and Gaming Duty could result in the rate on sports and racing betting rising from 15 per cent to the 21 per cent levied on games of chance such as online casino and slots.

"Maybe it's the current government that we really need to be talking to but I think it's a positive sign when you've got leading politicians and party leaders visiting Newmarket and Tattersalls and listening to voices from within the industry," said Varian. 

"I think it's very important that we separate racing bets from [other forms of] online gambling. It can't be all grouped together like it looks like they're trying to do. We've got to really push hard against that.

"As I understand it, this is yet another pivotal moment where racing has to galvanise itself as an industry and push pretty hard on to parliamentary ears that this would be disastrous for racing if this 'racing tax' was imposed."

Read more on the racing tax:

'It would be a bad look for any government to see the demise of British racing' - Newmarket trainers speak out against 'racing tax' 

‘We must not let this industry die’ - Kemi Badenoch hears racing's grave concerns about Treasury tax proposals  

John Gosden calls on sport to lobby MPs over racing tax proposals to avoid 'devastation' for the industry 

BHA issues urgent call to arms to 'axe the racing tax' over fears of £66 million hit to the sport's finances 

Comment: The racing tax would be desperate grab for revenue that would come at the cost of one of Britain's last remaining global success stories 

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