Trader wrote:So as an outsider, I'm not on top of the issue, but it is clear it has upset a few. So what's the background?
The government used to give racing heaps of cash and is now giving them less?
I see the cut has been $3m, is that $3m out of $3m? Or $3m out of say $20m?
Also, how does the consumption tax work? Is that a % of bookie turnover?
Do bookies then pay normal taxes on top of that?
What's the logic behind a consumption tax? Why does racing have it, but not other industries? Or do other industries have an equivalent?
I can't answer for all of the above but I'm pretty sure most bookmakers pay tax. That's your Warren Barringtons, pub TABs etc...
The consumption tax targeted online corporates (Sportsbet, Ladbrokes, 365 etc) who weren't paying tax at all despite taking bets from SA, being based offshore, usually in some foreign financial haven.
I think the funding cut was from the prize money allocated to the racing Adelaide Cup carnival, possibly even races prior to it.
In terms of making or breaking, it's probably not either of those things but it is a shift in the wrong direction for an industry already in somewhat dire straights.