Racehorses to go on strike and decimate programme over Rachel Reeves’ hated betting tax

All bets are off as horse racing is taking the unprecedented move of going on strike to teach Rachel Reeves a lesson as they down saddles

The Government is facing a shock new hurdle – after it was announced RACEHORSES are to go on strike. Britain is already battling industrial action from doctors, binmen, airport baggage handlers and university staff.

Now the British Horseracing Authority has announced nags are downing saddles too in a ‘and-they’re-not-off’ protest at Government plans to increase tax on betting.

As a result every race meeting in Britain that was scheduled for Wednesday September 10 has been scrapped. Instead the nation’s thoroughbreds will be given the day off to enjoy a roll in the hay.

It will be the first time horses have refused to race in the history of the sport. Four meetings have been axed at Lingfield Park, Carlisle, Uttoxeter and Kempton Park.

Racing chiefs say they will be rescheduled. While the horses will get a rest owners, trainers and jockeys will instead descend on Westminster to highlight the threat of the Treasury’s proposal to batter an industry worth £4.1 billion to the UK economy.

The Government plans to align the current 15% tax rate paid by bookmakers on racing to that of online betting – currently 21%. Economic analysis commissioned by the industry said the move would have a ‘destructive impact on the sport’.

It could cost horseracing £330m in the first five years putting 2,752 jobs at risk in the first year alone. This is because bookies are likely to seek to offset tax rises by increasing prices and cutting bonuses, advertising and marketing budgets.

A spokesman for the British Horseracing Authority said: “No race meetings will take place in Britain on Wednesday 10th September as the sport takes the extraordinary step of refusing to race in protest at the Government’s proposed tax rise on horserace betting.

“This will be the first time that the sport has voluntarily refused to race in its modern history. The announcement comes as British Racing’s ‘Axe the Racing Tax’ campaign gears up in advance of the Autumn Budget.

“The campaign is urging the Government to axe the Treasury’s proposal to bring existing online betting duties into one single rate which would have devastating consequences for the nation’s second-largest spectator sport that supports 85,000 jobs and which is attended by almost five million people each year.

“Racing’s decision not to race on September 10 is unprecedented. Race meetings in Britain take place on 363 days a year, with the exception of certain seasonal holidays.

“With the exception of meetings being called off due to adverse weather, equine virus outbreak and national crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic, this will be the first time in history that the sport has taken a collective decision not to race in protest at a Government proposal.”

The date chosen for the strike is 24 hours before the start of the high-profile St Leger meeting at Doncaster, which Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria, a keen racing fan, attended last year.

The authority’s chief executive Brant Dunshea said the ‘unprecedented decision’ had been taken to ‘highlight to Government the serious consequences of the Treasury’s tax proposals which threaten the very future of our sport’.

“British Racing is already in a precarious financial position and research has shown that a tax rise on racing could be catastrophic for the sport and the thousands of jobs that rely on it in towns and communities across the country,” he said.

“This is the first time that British Racing has chosen not to race due to Government proposals. We haven’t taken this decision lightly but in doing so we are urging the Government to rethink this tax proposal to protect the future of our sport which is a cherished part of Britain’s heritage and culture.

“Our message to Government is clear – axe the racing tax and back British Racing.”

Jim Mullen, chief executive officer of The Jockey Club, said: “Our sport has come together today and by cancelling racing fixtures we hope the Government will take a moment to reflect on the harm this tax will cause to a sport in which our country leads in so many ways.

“We hope this pause for reflection will enable the Government to truly understand the economic impact of horseracing and its cultural significance to communities across the UK, as well as the world-class racing festivals we host.

“After this period of reflection, we hope the full implications will be understood, and we can prevent the irreparable damage that threatens a sport the nation is, and should be, proud of.”

Martin Cruddace, chief executive officer at Arena Racing Company, said: “This is such an important day for our sport which faces an existential threat from this Government with its plan to harmonise tax on British horserace betting with online slots and casino games.

“Unlike online casino games British horseracing makes an enormous contribution to society and employment, has vastly different rates of gambling related harm and is not available every 10 seconds, 24-hours-a-day.

“We have always been taxed and regulated differently, and it is imperative for our future that we continue to be so. If the Government wants Britain to be a world leader in online casino and a world pauper in a sport at the heart of its culture, then tax harmonisation will achieve that aim.”

Paul Johnson, chief executive of the National Trainers Federation, said: “Cancelling fixtures is a huge sacrifice by racing and should serve as a stark reminder to the Government of the impact its tax raid will have on our sport. Thousands of jobs are at stake alongside the loss of millions of pounds to the British economy. And it’s not just the sport that will suffer.

“Almost five million people go racing every year and across Britain communities will be robbed of a vital social, cultural and economic asset if the Treasury and No10 proceed with this tax grab.

“British Racing cannot survive on reputation alone and we call on the Government to set an enlightened tax regime that will allow the sport to thrive before we reach the point of no return.”