Contact your MP

Please email your MP to attend the Westminster Hall debate on affordability checks

As I am sure you will be aware, a Westminster Hall debate is taking place on Monday 26th February at 4:30pm following the e-petition titled: ‘Stop the implementation of betting affordability/financial risk checks.’ This petition received 100,000 signatures in one month, demonstrating the strength of feeling around this issue, leading to the Petitions Committee granting the debate.

We are asking all owners to email their constituency MP and request that the MP attends the debate and impresses upon the Minister the dire consequences that stringent affordability checks would have on the finances of British horseracing, including, of course, the levels of prize money.

Completing the email should only take a couple of minutes, as below.

Please follow these steps:

1. Click on this link and insert your postcode to find your MP and their email address: https://members.parliament.uk/findyourmp.
   If you click on the MP’s email address, it should open a new email for you, but otherwise copy and paste the email address into a new email.
2. Please copy and paste the draft letter below. You can, of course, make changes or additions if you so wish.

 

Dear (name of MP)

As a racehorse owner living within your constituency, I am asking you to attend a Westminster Hall debate taking place on Monday 26th February at 4:30pm relating to an e-petition titled: ‘Stop the implementation of betting affordability/financial risk checks’, which received 100,000 signatures at the end of November 2023, just one month after it was launched.

The sport of horseracing sees investment in excess of £500m per year from owners into the rural economy and employs in the region of 80,000 people. The Exchequer is a beneficiary of some £4bn each year through horseracing.

As a sport which has a unique and interdependent relationship with betting, British racing’s income is extremely vulnerable to changes made to gambling regulation. This has already been seen through the introduction of an informal system of affordability checks being conducted by betting operators ahead of any formal legislative changes being made as part of the Government’s Gambling Act Review. Some of those proposals, starting at a net loss of just £125 in a month, would limit the ability of racing enthusiasts to bet on and engage with horseracing unless they pass intrusive affordability checks where personal information such as their credit score, job title and postcode would be used by betting operators to make an assessment on whether they can continue to place bets.

I hope you would agree that if affordability checks are to be implemented by the Government, they should be carefully and specifically targeted at those most at risk of betting-related harm and should not impact the vast majority of people who bet responsibly and within their means. British racing is currently experiencing a worrying year-on-year decline in monthly betting turnover of between 15-20% which could have an impact of up to £50m per annum on our industry’s finances. This is having a direct impact on prize money levels which therefore increases the overall cost of ownership.

I hope you will attend the debate to represent these concerns.  However, if you are unable to attend, please could I ask that you take up these concerns with the Minister via other means and send through the Minister’s response or raise the issue in DCMS oral questions if you are able to do so.

If you would like further information about this important issue for British racing, I know that the British Horseracing Authority would be very happy to help.  They can be contacted via [email protected]

Thank you in advance for your help.

Yours sincerely

(Your name and address)

 

3. Please then ‘sign’ the letter, ensuring that you include your address and postcode, to confirm to the MP that you live in their constituency.

 

Thank you in advance for your help with ensuring that all MPs are aware of the strength of feeling on this subject.

Please click on the link below to confirm that you have contacted your MP.

I HAVE CONTACTED MY MP