Economic crisis blamed as Tote sale put on hold 23/10/2008 |
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The government bowed to the inevitable yesterday and accepted that the proposed sale of the Tote would have to be put on hold, in light of the banking crisis and looming recession.
"It is not appropriate to pursue a sale in these market conditions," said the sports minister, Gerry Sutcliffe. "I have therefore decided that the Tote should be retained in public ownership for the medium-term and brought to the market when conditions are likely to deliver value for the tax-payer and racing."
A £320m bid for the Tote from a racing consortium was rejected by the government in March, despite a manifesto commitment by Labour at each of the last two elections to sell the business to racing. The question of whether an open-market sale would proceed has remained unanswered for seven months and yesterday's announcement "has lifted an immense weight from the shoulders of our staff," according to a Tote statement.
Nic Coward, chief executive of the British Horseracing Authority, responded to Sutcliffe's exhortation that the sport now work with the Tote to build up its value. "We see the Tote . . . striking deals in relation to pool operations with racecourses and making the most of opportunities such as international co-mingling of pool betting," he said.
"There are undoubtedly tough times ahead, and certainty in relation to the Tote and its income to racing is what we have been keen to secure."
Coward added that racing's income from other bookmakers was too low, a combative claim ahead of the October 31 deadline for a negotiated settlement of next year's levy. "Our return from betting across the board should be far higher than present levels," he said. "Racing will accept a continuation of the current levy scheme, but that is only to allow the vital reviews announced by the minister for sport to run their full course."
(Source: Guardian.co.uk)
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