Affordability checks a bigger threat than Covid impact, warns Jockey Club chief

The economic blow to British racing from proposals to bring in strict affordability checks for betting could be even greater than the financial impact from the absence of spectators from racecourses currently being experienced by the sport.

That was the warning on Monday from Jockey Club group chief executive Nevin Truesdale, who also spoke of potential integrity concerns for racing caused by punters being pushed to the black market as well as the danger of the sport losing its international competitiveness.

The Gambling Commission is consulting on measures to tackle problem gambling, which include a proposal to impose a threshold on net monthly gambling loss at as little as £100, leading to customers having to provide evidence they could afford to lose more.

Affordability: what is the Gambling Commission doing and what are the issues?

British racing's leaders have said that such measures could lead to the sport losing more than £60 million a year in reduced levy income and media rights payments if punters are put off betting on the sport due to the enhanced checks, but Martin Cruddace, Truesdale's counterpart at Arena Racing Company, has said that the true cost could be as much as £100m per annum and Truesdale agreed on Monday that the £60m figure was conservative.

"Be it £60m or be it £100m, the fact is that, no matter what the number is, it is huge," he said.

The sport has estimated that Britain's racecourses lost more than £250m in revenues in 2020 due to the loss of spectators and Truesdale added: "I would say we are probably more concerned about the impact of this consultation than we are about the financial impact of Covid because we will bounce back from Covid as an industry.

"The world will return to whatever the new normal looks like, whereas whatever impact this has is in perpetuity. We have a situation where the numbers we are talking about will have an ongoing annualised impact on the sport and will have a knock-on effect to racecourses, to jobs on racecourses, to the breeding industry, horse numbers and all those other metrics."

Nevin Truesdale: concerns about financial impact and integrity

Truesdale cited research carried out by Racecourse Media Group on Racing TV viewers which he said found that 93 per cent of respondents would not be happy to submit bank statements to establish affordability, while four in five thought restrictions could drive betting underground.

Truesdale also spoke of integrity concerns if betting was driven to unregulated operators without information-sharing agreements in place with the BHA.

"If you are offshore and in effect a black-market bookmaker, you are in a position that is putting the integrity model of the sport at significant risk," he said.

"Then there is the international angle as well. One of the big things we talk about around levy reform is the competitiveness of our prize-money at the top end versus other jurisdictions and exactly the same argument applies here.

"If you have less betting money going into levy, less betting money coming through in media rights payments, that will affect prize-money, that will affect the top end, that will affect our international competitiveness as a sport and the impact of that on breeding and inward investment to the UK as well."

There are also concerns within the sport that the consultation is happening separately to the government's review of the Gambling Act and that parliament will not have the opportunity to scrutinise any changes. Racing bodies and figures have been contacting parliamentarians over their concerns, with chancellor Rishi Sunak among those who have taken them up.

Rishi Sunak: the chancellor was one of a number MPs contacted by racing representativesCredit: UK Parliament

Truesdale's local MP is foreign secretary Dominic Raab, whose Esher and Walton constituency includes Sandown racecourse.

"I wrote to him as a constituent but also in my current role," Truesdale said. "He would have had a similar letter from Sandown. He wrote to the Gambling Commission on our behalf, as did some other MPs."

Truesdale said the sport recognised the need for action to be taken over problem gambling but warned of the unintended consequences of the Gambling Commission's proposals.

He added: "Racing needs to be very clear. We absolutely accept that problem gambling in this country is an issue that needs to be addressed, we fully support the Gambling Act review, but it needs to be done proportionately and in the right way."

The customer information mentioned by Truesdale tallied with research published by Ladbrokes and Coral owner Entain on Monday.

Polling of 1,500 people across the UK found that 73 per cent were concerned about sharing their data and potential privacy issues, while 45 per cent of regular players would consider gambling on the black market if they were forced to provide proof of income.

Read more:

Affordability checks could see some gamblers turn to black market operators

Arc boss Cruddace warns of £100m hit to racing from punter affordability checks

Racing faces 'existential threat' if rigid bet limits imposed warns pro-punter

Chancellor Rishi Sunak listens to fears over affordability checks on punters

Affordability checks could drive punters away from racing says bettors' forum

Punters' body sounds warning on review's proposed affordability checks

Spend limits considered as gambling review is launched by government

Gambling Commission issues final warning to industry over VIP schemes

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