'Racing supports a huge number of people and the whole thing could collapse'
Specialist writer of the year Jonathan Harding with part two of the series
There are several fires for British racing to put out this year but arguably none possesses the destructive potential of affordability checks on punters – and the biggest problem is we do not yet know the size of the blaze.
The sport continues to wait with bated breath for the UK government to finally deliver its gambling review white paper and affordability checks are expected to be included among the proposals announced in the coming weeks.
These are intended to stop people from betting beyond their means, a goal with which the betting industry is fully on board, supporting the need to update regulation and protect problem gamblers. But the nature of those checks and the low levels at which they might be introduced are a major concern.
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