Former Chancellor calls for government to rethink 'ill-advised, blunt and damaging' affordability checks

Former chancellor of the exchequer Nadhim Zahawi has called on the government to rethink its policy on affordability checks, warning that horseracing faces an "existential threat" as a result of "ill-advised, blunt and damaging" affordability checks.

The significant intervention came as MPs prepared to gather in Westminster Hall on Monday evening for a debate prompted by an outpouring of public anger over the imposition of checks, with more than 100,000 signing a petition calling for affordability checks to be scrapped. 

Zahawi highlighted the sharp fall in betting turnover on racing – the Gambling Commission reported a £900 million fall in turnover on the sport in 2022-23 – and argued this was indicative not just of the damage being done to horseracing, but also the flight of betting activity to the black market.

The UK government has shown no indication of reversing its policy course since affordability checks, which have been gradually rolled out under Gambling Commission direction for several years, featured as formal policy in its gambling white paper last spring, but is expected to come under pressure on Monday evening from MPs highlighting the impact checks will have on the sport and on bettors.

• Comment: MPs must not underestimate how bitterly bettors resent checks or the damage being done to racing 

Zahawi, whose constituency includes Stratford racecourse, said: "I believe we face an existential threat to racing. I, with [ex-BHA chair] Steve Harman, have been actively engaged in this issue and I've visited some of the major trainers in Newmarket, including John Gosden, as well as the Skeltons in my own constituency. 

"I am genuinely worried that the current situation could permanently harm the industry, leading to people leaving the sector and moving to other countries. It's a very bad position to be in.

"This situation is a perfect storm created, in part, by the Gambling Commission's ill-advised actions. The affordability checks are not only blunt instruments but are proving to be highly damaging, with many bookmakers reporting a ten to 20 per cent decline in racing betting revenues. And this betting is not just disappearing. It is being driven underground or overseas."

Stratford racecourse is part of Nadhim Zahawi's constituencyCredit: Getty Images

Zahawi, who during his ministerial career had responsibility for the Covid-19 vaccine rollout, stressed he did not believe the checks were the most effective or proportionate way to tackle gambling harm. 

"These blunt checks are not being targeted at the three per cent of people who really need help as problems gamblers," he said. "These are harming those who are enjoying a flutter and supporting the racing industry. 

"I believe there are much better ways of doing this. There are 15 markers of harm and a lot of academic work being done that can help identify these three per cent of people who really do need help, rather than this charade which is causing deep harm to what I think is a very important industry for not just rural constituencies like mine but the whole country."

Zahawi, who said he is unable to attend Monday's debate but would be supporting his parliamentary colleagues in calling for a change of policy, also poured scorn on the concept of 'frictionless' affordability checks, which the government and Gambling Commission have promised will be deployed in the vast majority of cases where checks are triggered but critics say are not technically feasible. 

"The idea that affordability checks are frictionless is just not true," he said. "I've always been evidence led and the evidence is very clear that these checks are not frictionless, nor do they come without costs. People worry because they're leaving [credit] fingerprints all over the place that may affect things such as mortgage applications."

As part of the circle of Westminster racing supporters who helped secure levy reform in 2017, Zahawi is also disappointed at the lack of progress on delivering the second stage of reform to extend the levy to betting on overseas racing.

"I am frustrated. I think in many ways it is a no-brainer," he said. "The industry is getting decimated. We're seeing a lot of [racing] business go to Ireland or France. Why? We have a relative advantage in horseracing because of our history. Why are we letting this flit away?"

However, Zahawi, a keen showjumper and rider as well as a fan of racing, warned the government against assuming levy reform could resolve the problems created by affordability checks. 

"What I'm calling for is for the minister at DCMS to look at this very seriously and not just simply to say, 'Oh, well, we'll just ask the betting industry to stump up a bit more on the levy'," he said. "That doesn't solve the problem."

MPs will debate the petition calling for affordability checks to be scrapped at Westminster Hall on Monday. Watch the debate live on YouTube from 4.30pm.

The debate transcript will be available shortly after its conclusion, while you can follow and join the discussion on X using #PetitionsDebate 

Read more:

How black market bookies have spread through racing - and even solicit business at Cheltenham

'These proposals risk sending a rocket to the core of what makes British racing tick' 

Debate has got people talking about affordability checks again - and it's clear racing still needs to challenge the Gambling Commission 

Subscribe to Racing Post Members' Club Ultimate Monthly and get 50% off your first three months! Available to new subscribers purchasing Members' Club Ultimate Monthly using code MEMBERS24. First three payments will be charged at £24.98, subscription renews at full monthly price thereafter. To cancel please contact us at least seven days before subscription is due to renew.