Speaking in response to the earlier written Ministerial Statement regarding the 55th Horserace Betting Levy Scheme, Nick Rust, Chief Executive of the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), said:

“We understand Government’s decision regarding the 55th Levy Scheme, and welcome the statutory rates for both retail and remote betting remaining at 10.75% of gross profits. Unless considerable work was carried out by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to look at imaginative ways to deal with the fact that the 55th Levy Scheme will not cover around 40% of betting activity on British Racing, it was highly likely that a settlement at or around the current Scheme would be determined.

“DCMS can now continue its focus on the replacement of the Levy with the Horserace Betting Right to which all in British Racing remain fully committed, and we welcome the additional comments by the Minister for Sport and Tourism Tracey Crouch in the House of Commons this morning to this effect.

“In the interim period prior to the Horserace Betting Right’s introduction we look forward to signing up more Authorised Betting Partners as a transition to a level playing for all betting operators, and achieving a fair return for the sport.”

Notes to Editors:

1. The written Ministerial Statement can be found here:  https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/written-ministerial-statement-55th-horserace-betting-levy-scheme

2. A transcript of today’s House of Commons debates, which include debate around the Racing Right, can be found here: http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/hansard/commons/todays-commons-debates/read/unknown/7/