Victorian Racing Minister Napthine Welcomes High Court Race Fields Decision
Victorian Racing Minister Denis Napthine has weighed on today's ground breaking High Court decision that has dismissed an appeal by corporate bookmakers Betfair and Sportsbet, ruling that all wagering operators taking bets on races in this state must pay Racing NSW 1.5 per cent of turnover under the state governments racefield legislation.
Napthine has released a statement saying that “The unanimous decision by the High Court to dismiss an appeal by Betfair and Sportsbet from the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia is welcomed.”
“This decision provides much greater certainty to the racing industry which is worth more than $2.5 billion to the Victorian economy and employs 70,000 people.”
“The Victorian Coalition Government has already started examining the decision to understand its full implications in this state.”
“Based on this examination, the Coalition Government will bring forward legislation that makes sure the Victorian racing industry receives fair and reasonable returns for its racing product from wagering entities,” Napthine said today.
Both Betfair and Sportsbet are due to release statements in the wake of the decision.