The Sunday Afternoon ‘Finish On'

IN trying times, cost of living pressures continue to place downward pressure on wagering and the soon to be introduced legislation banning credit card deposits to wagering accounts will further erode trickle down income to all three codes.

Following a 2021 parliamentary inquiry into wagering, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said: "People should not be betting with money they do not have" and, at that time, it was estimated credit card deposits represented 20 per cent of total deposits.

No doubt impulse wagering is a slippery slope but can legislation really protect people from themselves?

There has long been a ban on land-based gambling, where credit cards cannot be used and this new oversight provides a symmetry of sorts but there will always be a ‘work around'.

Cash advances on credit cards will be the next port of call yet, at the very least, this new oversight will accelerate that outcome.

The legislation omits lotteries from the ban, including those offered by charities, because "they present a low-risk to gambling harm."

Interactive Gambling Act 2001 will formally engage the change and it will provide the Australian Communications and Media Authority enhanced powers of enforcement.

The prospect of decreased wagering directly results in less return to industry and, on Friday, Greyhound Racing Victoria concluded their consultative process for the reduction of up to 35 full time positions.

Reducing numbers at GRV's head office was part of an across-the-board review of spending yet the pain felt in Victoria is not isolated and by year's end, wagering returns are likely to be down again.

Just how other jurisdictions react will be interesting.

In WA, Sunday greyhound race meetings are to be omitted from the calendar from August 1 while Harness Racing Victoria, this week, announced it will cut $6.6m from its operations next financial year, which is additional to the $6.1m already realised this financial year.

The savings relate directly to HRV services and have been put in place to maximise returns to industry.

Prizemoney levels across the nation are under duress and it will be interesting to see how high-end Group race prizemoney for greyhound racing is scrutinised – surely a contraction is neigh.

Surely the pruning of this ‘tree' must start at the top and not at grass roots level.

Sustainability is the name of the game right now and agility is key – these headwinds are getting stronger.

BUDGET BLUES FOR NSW

As income to industry decreases, there is still a strong view that NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey will increase the Point of Consumption Tax to 20 per cent – and in line with the Queensland metric – at some juncture down the road.

For greyhound racing in NSW, a potential rise would further erode income and unlike Racing NSW and Harness Racing NSW, Greyhound Racing NSW receives no benefit from the taxation lift (unlike Queensland and Victoria, for example).

How times have changed!

On May 15, 2018 former GRNSW CEO Tony Mestrov responded to the Government's Point of Consumption Tax on Wagering in NSW Consultation Paper and considered the "NSW greyhound racing industry should be no worse off than before it was introduced".

A further safeguard with the introduction of PoCT was that GRNSW's receipts would "allow for further investment in Greyhounds As Pets and track upgrades."

That direct assertion, we know, was ignored.

With PoCT funding GWIC before any monies filter through to GRNSW, the investment GAP and infrastructure has not been materially assisted and how it shows.

FILLING THE GAP

While racing's declining income is worrying, re-homing of racing stock is the most significant issue facing greyhound racing and time has come for regulators to direct attention to utilisation rate (pups whelped as a percentage to racing stock) for all breeders.

Plenty of discussion has taken place in respect of breeder's capacity (for success) yet those folk who whelp, race and re-home entire litters are treated as equals to those who have failed litters (whelped to racing stock).

Gold standard breeders deserve a break and tiered (lower) registration costs could be the starting point.

Thereafter, robust discussion needs to be had around the eligibility of poor performed bitches being eligible to be mated.

Just under a decade back, the poorly performed Amarina Only (a maiden after 113 starts) was bred with and her progeny (a litter of eight) won only four of 400 career starts.

She should have never been eligible to be mated and, despite being an isolated example, there is no provision to stop it happening again.

And then there is the increasing practice of GAP dumping – a decision made by a participant to no longer want to continue in the sport and expect re-homing entities to absorb whole (mass) numbers in one hit.

People must take personal responsibility for racing stock and any ‘dumping' activity should permanently disqualify that person from further engagement.

Enough consultation has taken place. It is time for Greyhounds Australasia to move decisively, show leadership and have breeding eligibility rules in place before January 1, 2025.

LET ‘EM KNOW

Punters, in the main, who supported Johnny Koala at Albion on Friday had little to no concern after the son of Magic Sprite quickly led from box four and was untroubled to account for Valhalla ($1.70) in 30.22.

Unfortunately for Betfair punters there was a ‘fly in the ointment' as Tiki Bar (box eight) – which had been a late scratching and removed from all other bookies markets – remained in all Betfair options and that made the contest null and void by their Terms and Conditions.

The ruling, while correct as it changes the ‘race shape' of the contest, is at a tangent to what happens in the gallops and harness racing. Non-runners in the equine codes are treated as scratchings (with deductions) as there is rarely little time (barrier mishaps for example) for markets to be adjusted.

The upside for those who backed others in the contest was that monies were refunded but that's no comfort to the ‘winners' on Johnny Koala.

Best practice, if any punter sees this issue, is to advise Betfair of the anomaly and only wager when the oversight has been corrected or strike the bet with another wagering operator.

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