UK Government's Treasury collaborating with the racing industry to uncover potential unforeseen effects of proposed gambling taxes.
The UK government is planning to harmonise online gambling taxes by merging the current three separate duties into a single Remote Betting and Gaming Duty (RBGD), a move that could increase the tax cost for horse racing bets.
The proposed RBGD, intended to simplify the tax structure for online gambling, would tax bets on horse racing at the same rate as online casino and slot games. This could potentially lead to increased costs for online bookmakers, resulting in a reduction of promotional activities for racing, a decline in betting turnover, and a threat to the financial viability of the British horse racing industry.
The government is aware of these concerns and has engaged with British racing to identify the potential unintended consequences of the harmonisation and possible mitigations. The Treasury is currently consulting on the technical implementation of the new tax regime and is looking for ways to mitigate the negative impact on horse racing.
The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), the industry body for gambling operators, opposes any "carve out" or exemption for horse racing within the harmonised tax framework. Instead, they advocate for overall stability and growth in the gambling sector, emphasising that tax rises threaten jobs and investment.
Meanwhile, a cross-party parliamentary group and industry stakeholders have called on the government to exempt horse racing from the tax harmonisation plans. They argue that the sport's fundamentally different nature warrants a different tax treatment to prevent serious harm.
In summary, the UK government's proposed harmonisation of online gambling taxes is a complex issue that balances the goal of tax simplification and fairness with the need to protect key sectors like horse racing. No final decision on any exemptions has been announced yet.
The proposed RBGD, if implemented, could impose the same tax rate on horse racing bets as those on online casino and slot games, which may increase costs for bookmakers and potentially reduce their promotional activities for racing. This could adversely affect betting turnover and pose a threat to the financial health of the British horse racing industry. The Betting and Gaming Council, however, disagrees with any exemption for horse racing, arguing that such a move could jeopardize overall stability and growth in the gambling sector.
