Posted on: February 27, 2024, 08:18h.
Last updated on: February 27, 2024, 08:18h.
Proposed affordability checks for UK gamblers could spell curtains for British horse racing, industry stakeholders fear.
The planned checks could be triggered by losses of as little as £125 (US$159) in 30 days or £500 (US$ 634) in a year. This could result in a hit of £250 million (US$ 316 million) to racing over the next five years, money it can ill afford to lose. Prize money in British racing already compares unfavorably to other countries and a dwindling industry will cost jobs, according to the
Critics of affordability checks argue they are an unwelcome intrusion that will drive vulnerable gamblers to black market operators. They also note that the proposed £500 year loss trigger equates to just £1.37 a day.
Revenue Already Down
Horseracing receives £350 million a year from the regulated gambling industry through sponsorship, media rights, and betting levy payments. But the racing industry says revenues from betting have fallen in the past few months by 15% to 20%, which it claims is a direct consequence of non-mandatory trials of affordability checks by operators.
A Jockey Club petition that asks the government to “abandon the planned implementation of affordability checks for some people who want to place a bet” quickly garnered the 100K-plus signatures required to trigger a debate in the Houses of Parliament. That debate took place Monday.
‘Bad Policy’
In it, Independent MP for St Helens North Conor McGinn described affordability checks as “bad policy in terms of the concept and the philosophy behind it, its purpose, and indeed its efficacy in addressing that purported purpose.”
It was “incoherent,” and “a response to anecdote and emotion, government overreach, and an infringement on the right of the individual,” he said. “On no other legal leisure activity in the UK has the Government set out spending limits in this fashion.”
It would have a “detrimental, disproportionate and, frankly, existential impact on British horseracing,” he added.
‘Health Issue’
But Labour MP for Sheffield Central Paul Blomfield complained horseracing was “being used as a wedge issue to tackle a different problem.”
If this is a health issue, we need to have a prevention strategy, just as we do with other health problems,” he said. “Affordability checks will play an important role. They must be set independently rather than by the industry and set at a level that will protect those who need them most.
Blomfield added that he recognized many people enjoy betting safely and without harm, and so affordability checks should be frictionless. But he urged the government not to lose sight of the fact that the checks are about “protecting people from harm and ensuring that the gambling industry is regulated in the right way.”
