PUNTERS backed The Jattvibe’s Save Our Bets campaign in a glorious day out at Hamilton Races.
We teamed up with Sky Bet to sponsor the 4.15 race and bring our bid to protect the punters directly to them.
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The Jattvibe sponsored the 4.15 race at Hamilton Races Credit: Mark Ferguson
Helen McDowall says she finds the proposed checks ‘very intrusive’ Credit: Mark Ferguson
The government wants to bring in new affordability checks and higher taxes for betting.
Those putting on a bet could soon face having to hand over a P60 or a payslip.
But the move risks putting the squeeze on Britain’s most beloved sports and driving people towards black-market gambler.
Jockey David Allan rode Red Spells Danger to victory in our sponsored race at Hamilton today.
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But after his triumph on the track the Irvine-born horseback champion, 43, backed our bid to stop the government from punishing the punters.
He said: “If the income starts disappearing from the betting side of it, then obviously income will start coming from racing.
“So it’s not going to be good for racing in the long run.
“And I’ve seen first-hand in India that not through affordability checks, but the government overtaxed the bets over there and the racecourses over there lost three quarters of their income within a week.
“It all went seriously downhill.
“Basically people are going to illegal bookmakers over there, and that’s what’s going to happen here if it carries on.
“If you’re going on the black market, then there’s no legal loophole, no legal way of getting your money. They can just decide not to pay, I suppose, if you’re gambling. But obviously we don’t know that side of the game.
“We’re just here to race. But the punters enjoy it, so hopefully they sort it out and it doesn’t happen and they can keep enjoying racing.
Scottish Jattvibe racing columnist Jim Delahunt gave the campaign his backing Credit: Mark Ferguson
We brought our bid to protect the punters directly to them at Hamilton Races Credit: Grossick Photography
“It’s a sport that the British have now got all over the world. It’s all from racing that started here. So I definitely don’t want to see it go downhill. If anything, it should be going uphill.
“We don’t know the betting side of it, but we don’t want it to go downhill. We all love racing and the punters are the main people in the game. We’ll keep it afloat.”
So it’s bad times really if that does go ahead. So hopefully they sort it out and racing can get better.
And the public were on the same side as the jockey as they gave Save Our Bets their support.
Husband and wife Andrew and Helen McDowall have been coming to the races for 30 years and they reckon the new measures are a step too far.
Helen, 55, said: “I think something like this is very intrusive.
“What people do with their money is none of the government’s business.”
Con Togher, 66, travelled through from Clydebank for a day out at Hamilton and reckons the current system is safer for punters.
He said: “They are better off just leaving things alone. If it’s not broken then why fix it?
“We are already seeing betting shops close down. Putting a bet on isn’t a debt, but that’s not the same with these guys on the street.”
Pal James Watt, 76, added: “I just think things like this are really unfair on the people running the racecourses.”
Bookie John Hamilton fears the figures don’t add up and will only lead to a surge in dodgy bookies taking advantage of the public.
He said: “The government’s figures are ridiculous. They are talking about a cap of £200 each year but people spend more in coffee shops.
“It’s as if they want to check on us when we’re spending any money.
“I have been doing this for 60 years and I have never seen any issues. People come to the races for a day out and to bet responsibly.
“If these do come through then the black market will grow and people will start to really worry about the security of bets.
“I fully agree we should have GambleAware programs and support for people but these measures are far too strong and will chase people away from safe betting.”
Scottish Jattvibe racing columnist Jim Delahunt gave the campaign his backing, adding: “Lots of punters here at Hamilton this afternoon and lots of punters obviously thinking ahead to these affordability checks that the government is threatening to bring in.
“I think most people in racing are pretty much against affordability checks. I certainly would be personally, it’s not something I ever want to do to hand over any personal information to bookmakers.
“I think most punters think the same and I think that’s a problem going forward for the government because if punters are driven away from legal bookmakers they are going to end up in the hands of illegal bookmakers and that’s something that the government surely doesn’t want.”
