The British Horseracing Authority hailed what could be a major boost to the sport’s long-term funding on Tuesday evening after the government announced it will review in 2021 the Levy system, which returns money to racing from off-course betting, three years ahead of schedule.
An early review, including a possible extension of Levy payments to cover races overseas, was a key step in the industry’s Covid-19 Recovery Plan, published in August. The plan aims to restore stability to racing’s income following huge losses in revenue due to the absence of significant crowds from British tracks since mid-March.
Jockey Club Racecourses alone, which owns venues including Cheltenham, Aintree, Epsom and Newmarket, is estimated to have lost at least £100m in revenue in 2020, while the overall loss to the industry has been estimated at £300m by the Racecourse Association. It could also be several months at least before attendances can return to anything like pre-Covid levels.
The Levy review could also examine the possibility of returning to at least some element of turnover-based assessment of payments, rather than the current system based wholly on bookmakers’ gross profits from bets.
“We welcome the announcement from the minister [Nigel Huddleston] that [the Department of Culture, Media and Sport] will examine in 2021 the timetable for reviewing the Levy,” said Nick Rust, the BHA’s chief executive. “Racing industry leaders agreed there was an urgent case for reform as part of our plans to recover from Covid-19 and have presented a united front to government. We look forward to working with DCMS officials and ministers to ensure the Levy is sustainable and fit for the digital age.”
DCMS launches review to assess gambling laws in digital age
What promises to be an extended process to address the many and manifest flaws in the 2005 Gambling Act finally got under way, when the DCMS launched a review of the current regime
Issues for consideration once the initial “call for evidence” period ends on 31 March 2021 will include the possible introduction of online stake limits and the extent of gambling advertising and sponsorship in sport. Without pre-judging the outcome, however, it is far from the boldest tip to suggest the current featherlight-touch regime, which ushered in £100-a-spin FOBTs on every high street until last April and left a great deal of the day-to-day regulation to the gambling firms themselves, is on borrowed time.
How this will affect racing and punters remains to be seen. A ban on advertising that did not exempt racing, for instance, would reduce the current multi-million pound value of the sport’s media rights to not a great deal more than zero. If, however, racing ends up as the only mainstream sport with betting ads allowed, the rights could be worth much more.
Another idea that has received plenty of attention, meanwhile, is the introduction of “affordability checks” for online gamblers once their losses in any month reach a certain level, requiring them to prove they can afford to lose more before continuing. The figure that tends to be quoted is £100, since it was among the recommendations in a paper published by the Social Market Foundation think-tank in August.
Any proposal that could have an impact on levels of betting turnover is a potential concern for racing. But some encouraging news, though, is that despite plenty of headlines which suggested otherwise back in August, no one – well, no one at the SMF, at least – is proposing a hard £100 limit on monthly losses unless backers can prove they can afford to lose more.
“The next day I read in the newspapers, ‘SMF calls for £100 a month limit on gambling’,” said James Noyes, lead author of the report, “which I thought was a misrepresentation of a far more nuanced argument.
“It would be a soft cap, a due diligence threshold that would standardise the point at which intervention kicks in, in terms of the gaming or betting patterns of players. It is a bit like credit cards, if you whack a three-grand purchase on your card on day one, you might get a phone call. But over time, a relationship is established on patterns of spend and there’s a great degree of freedom.”
Wednesday’s best bets
Hexham hosts the only jumps meeting after Leicester’s scheduled card succumbed to waterlogging and heavy ground will ensure it is a real test for the runners at the Northumberland track.
But it is a competitive card for the most part – if you overlook our old and much-improved friend Bushypark (12.25) in the opener – and Golan Cloud (2.25), who was the runner-up behind Bushypark when he landed a big gamble here in November – could be the standout bet when he steps up in trip.
Bushypark’s facile win at Haydock last week confirmed that Golan Cloud was facing an impossible take on his seasonal debut, but he finished clear of the remaining runners and recorded a decent timefigure in the circumstances. He stayed on well to the line too, suggesting that an extra three furlongs will not be an issue.
Sandy Thomson’s string is in fine form and Mymilan (12.55) will appreciate the test in the three-mile handicap chase and has been dropped a pound since his close fourth at Carlisle last time, while Buckingham (12.15) could be worth backing to get the better of I’m Available on the Flat card at Lingfield. Eve Johnson Houghton’s runner could not get running room at a vital stage at Kempton last time and finished fast to be beaten less than a length.
Lingfield Park
11.45 Fame N Fortune
12.15 Buckingham (nb)
12.45 Revolutionary Man
1.15 Queen's Course
1.45 Iris Bud
2.15 Kodiac Harbour
2.45 Junoesque
3.15 Black Medick
Hexham
12.25 Bushypark
12.55 Mymilan
1.25 West End Lady
1.55 Solid Strike
2.25 Golan Cloud (nap)
2.55 Skipping On
3.25 Sophie Fatale
Kempton Park
3.50 Caribbean Sunset
4.20 Maraakiz
4.55 Run To Freedom
5.25 Rohaan
5.55 Secret Victory
6.25 Amniarix
6.55 Central City
7.25 Imperium
Queen’s Course (1.15) should also go well at the Surrey track, while Central City (6.55) is a fair price for the 10-furlong handicap at Kempton.
