'Many operations will not have the fiscal power to survive if this hits us' - Newmarket's top trainers voice concerns over 'racing tax'

With Newmarket about to stage one of its showpiece meetings of the year, local trainers have voiced concerns over the future as the shadow of the government's online gambling tax consultation hangs over the sport.

The BHA has described the 'racing tax' as one of the "gravest risks" the sport has ever seen, one that would punch a hole in its finances and put thousands of jobs at risk, including in Britain's largest training centre.

One of the town's leading trainers, William Haggas, has backed the BHA's 'Axe the Racing Tax' campaign and said: "I concur with everything we've heard from the racing fraternity. I've never understood how racing and online gaming are paired together, it's ill-educated. There's a marked difference and a lot of how this plays out will likely depend on the bookmakers' reaction and the view they take of it."

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Haggas, who was among those at a conference in Newmarket last week addressing the difficulties faced by the sport, which was attended by Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch, added: "I was told the other day that if you put every stud farm, training centre and racecourse collectively together the footprint would be bigger than Hampshire.

"When you think of it like that, that is the size of what we're dealing with, it's a huge sport and covers a huge area. Because it's so spread out maybe they don't recognise that, but what we're hearing is it's not getting through yet. Lisa Nandy [culture secretary] stood up in parliament and told the house she was all in favour of backing racing. If she's true to her word this is one way of doing it."

This chart shows the gulf between actual and expected online turnover on racing - the situation has since worsened

Betting on racing and sports is taxed at a 15 per cent duty but there are fears the government's plans could lead to it being aligned with the 21 per cent rate levied on games of chance such as online casino and slots, with modelling commissioned by the BHA showing that such a move could cost the sport at least £66 million.

"If racing is taxed in the same way as online gaming our big worry isn't just for the future of horseracing, but also for all the young personnel who have come to the sport for their career opportunities," said trainer Simon Crisford, who also attended the conference in Newmarket. "It will be devastating If they don't have a solid career path to follow because the industry has crumbled from beneath their feet.

Simon Crisford: racing tax could be 'devasting' for those trying to make a career in racingCredit: www.healyracing.ie

"It's a massive concern for Ed [Crisford, son and joint-trainer] and all the young trainers, jockeys and stable staff. We work incredibly closely with our staff and couldn't do it without them – we have a responsibility to them and that weighs very heavily in headwinds like these. 

"Margins are already incredibly tight as they are and we employ a lot of people. I'm deeply worried and concerned, not just for their future, but for everyone's staff.

"We run a small business in the grand scheme of things and we're being squeezed further by other taxations such as the Employers' National Insurance hike. Now we're facing a black cloud on the horizon which will certainly put a huge number of small businesses out of action. It's inevitable. Many training operations simply will not have the fiscal power to survive if this hits us."

On the impact on the wider industry, Crisford added: "We're a huge industry made up of a lot of small businesses and what it costs to keep the show on the road, this will take so many people out of business – it's horrible to think about it. I think this is our last stand and we're all writing to our MPs and doing what we can behind the scenes."

Crisford also felt a greater distinction needed to be made between betting on racing and casino-style games, and added: "Backing the winner of a race requires a great deal of skill. It's a centuries-old puzzle people love trying to solve and punters take great satisfaction from getting it right. 

"So we are all extremely angry that racing might be harmonised with very harmful games of chance. I'm completely shocked that the government might not be willing to recognise the obvious difference. Talk about biting the hand that feeds you!"

The Treasury's consultation on plans to harmonise different online gambling taxes into a single Remote Betting and Gaming Duty closes a week on Monday with the sport's leaders urging fans of the sport to write or email their local MP.

Read more here:

Top punter Patrick Veitch warns of the 'disastrous' consequences racing tax would have on the industry

Treasury working with racing to identify 'unintended consequences' of gambling tax proposals 

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

'Give them pain and discomfort' - British racing told to make life tough for government as battle lines are drawn over tax consultation

Write to your MP about the Racing Tax

Racing TV has created a template letter than can be used to email local MPs about your concerns over the 'racing tax'. Follow this link to access the template – it should not take more than a couple of minutes to complete.