Julie Harrington, the chief executive of the British Horse Racing Authority, spoke of being “reassured” following the UKGC’s response to the first tranche of white paper consultations.
In a statement put out on the BHA website, she declared she felt that the government had “listened to racing’s long campaign against the affordability checks” which were proposed last year in its white paper.
“It is also to the credit of racing fans, and the wider racing industry, that their lobbying of government, whether through taking part in our ‘Right to Bet’ survey or signing the petition to trigger February’s Westminster Hall debate, has so clearly been heard.”
However, at the same time, she also emphasised that yesterday’s announcement had “not yet secure[d] a more sustainable future for racing’s finances.”
“We remain concerned that there is no update on the government’s review of the levy, promised more than a year ago, and the threat that represents to Racing’s financial well-being,” she said.
“It is also vital that new rules on anti-money laundering checks are set out as soon as possible to avoid racing bettors being caught up in separate requests for financial documents.”
