GRASS ROOTS LEFT TO FEEL THE PINCH
Prize money at standstill
RACING: Toowoomba Turf Club chairman Kent Woodford believes the state government has missed a golden opportunity to restore confidence within the racing industry by denying its participants an immediate boost in prize-money levels.
Woodford’s comments follow the government’s weekend announcement on its spending plan for revenue raised from the newly introduced Point of Consumption tax.
The POC will be be applied at a rate of 15% of net wagering revenue earned from bets placed by Queensland punters through betting operators licensed in Australia.
It is expected to raise up to $70 million in its first year.
Queensland racing industry participants lobbied for a percentage of the tax windfall to be fed back into prize money which lags significantly below interstate levels.
But while some of the tax revenue has been earmarked for racing industry use, none in the short term will be funnelled into prize-money pools.
A joint announcement from treasurer Jackie Trad and racing minister Stirling Hinchliffe included commitments of:
■ Ongoing financial support to RQ to ensure that the introduction of the POC tax doesn’t negatively impact Queensland’s racing industry;
■ $17.8 million to write-off 50% of historical debt owed to government and;
■ A one-off payment of $20 million for investment in new greyhound and harness-racing facilities.
Woodford is reluctant to talk down industry confidence but he believes the mathematics of the Queensland industry’s stationary prize money levels speak for themselves.
“Industry members believed this was an ideal opportunity to return some confidence to stakeholders with a positive lead on prize money,” Woodford said.
“But it’s very disappointing to see this chance come and go.
“Unfortunately it does set the industry back and does nothing for the confidence of people trying to go forward.
“You would have thought injecting money directly into the pockets of owners and industry members would have been a high priority.
“It could have helped provide an ideal shot in the arm for the economy as a whole.
“The more the industry grows the more benefits there are for racing and government.
“We always hold hope I suppose and hopefully if this tax can raise the money estimated some of it can eventually find its way back to the grass-roots.”