Rules must be Adhered to

Rules must be adhered to as Ffos Las farce could have been disastrous for racing
Greg Wood
"The BHA can not stand by when rules are clearly broken as political groups will make the sport pay dearly "
• Aidan Coleman given whip ban in belated inquiry





Ffos Las racecourse where the West Wales National was run and ended in controversial circumstances. Photograph: Barry Batchelor/PA

he British Horseracing Authority came out punching last week when news of the Green Party’s policies on the sport penetrated racing’s tough outer cocoon. These include an immediate ban on the whip, the use of injury and death statistics to “close dangerous tracks and ban trainers with poor records”, and a “high level of compulsory levy on betting” to be used “solely for welfare improvements.”

“To be clear, thoroughbred horses bred for racing are not exploited and we fundamentally reject this suggestion,” Robin Mounsey, the BHA’s spokesman, said. “We welcome scrutiny of equine welfare policies and would be happy to demonstrate to the Green Party the high welfare standards that exist within British racing and how the sport already exceeds most of their key requirements laid out in their policy proposals.”

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Since there is no chance that the Green Party will be in a position to implement their proposals following the election in May, the BHA’s comments were designed for its internal audience as much as anything else. When racing’s opponents attack the sport on welfare grounds, it is the Authority’s job to respond, and stress it always does that for everyone in the sport, horse welfare is an issue of “paramount importance.” Full Article > www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2015/feb/...ing?CMP=share_btn_tw