BHA Says It Is Happy With ‘Racing’s Cancelled Day’ Media Reach

by Roy Brindley, 23 September 2025

The British Horseracing Authority’s axe-grinding visit to Westminster achieved a “huge amount” of media coverage.

In the media stakes, the BHA’s strike day got off to a flier. © Getty Images

Key Facts:

• British Horseracing Authority claims impressive media coverage of its Axe The Tax crusade.
• Twenty senior politicians attended the BHA’s Westminster event.
• BHA has produced two short videos to underline horse racing’s importance to racegoers and small business owners.
• November 26 Is British Horse Racing’s D-Day.

In terms of reach, the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has expressed satisfaction with its September 10 ‘Racing’s Cancelled Day’. It was the day when the British Racing’s Axe The Racing Tax campaign saw the sport take strike action for the first time in history.

Greg Swift, the BHA’s director of policy and communications, took to his organisation’s website over the weekend to declare Racing’s Cancelled Day attracted an impressive amount of media attention in the 48 hours before and after the event.

His blog-style editorial lists “extensive coverage” on BBC Breakfast, Good Morning Britain, ITV News and prominent features in The Times, The Telegraph, The Sun, Daily Mirror, Daily Express, The Independent and the front page of the Daily Star.

Swift’s item declared the #AxeTheRacingTax hashtag had been seen more than three million times on social media. “It is clear the campaign is having an impact,” he wrote, also pointing out more than 200 people attended the BHA’s Westminster event – including 20 senior politicians.

A Bad Day to Highlight a Good BHA Cause

Politically, September 10 was a busy day as the world came to terms with Israeli airstrikes on Hamas leadership in Qatar and Russian drones’ violation of NATO airspace over Poland. Without these events, the attendance would have probably been greater.

“There may have been some who attended the event who were sceptical about whether the Axe The Racing Tax campaign was compelling or cutting through to politicians and the public,” Swift wrote.

“Yet Racing’s Cancelled Day attracted a huge amount of media coverage in the 48 hours before and after the event itself, receiving over 530 pieces of coverage across broadcast and print media, including 179 national broadcast segments and 73 national print and online articles,” Online-casinos.com reported the planned disruption to normal horse racing service on August 20.

To further support its cause, the BHA has produced two short films: ‘Thanks to the Thoroughbred’ tells the story of how many livelihoods depend on one horse in training, with Cheltenham Festival winner Paisley Park and his blind owner Andrew Gemmell playing starring roles.

A second feature, an ‘Axe The Racing Tax’ campaign film, showcases what racing means to participants, racegoers and small business owners. The BHA has also produced its own news-style feature, which was filmed on September 10 in Westminster. Titled ‘Racing’s Cancelled Day in Westminster’, YouTube’s view counter for this public information item currently displays a low figure.

November 26 Is D-Day for Racing

The Autumn Budget, when Chancellor Rachel Reeves will lay out the government’s plans on spending and tax changes, is scheduled for November 26. Only then will horse racing discover if the current 15 per cent duty on gross profits from betting on the sport will be changed.

This will be Labour’s second autumn budget in 15 years, and the second time horse racing and UK-listed betting firms brace themselves for impact. Twelve months ago, over £2 billion was wiped off the stock market value of the major UK-listed betting firms ahead of the budget when no changes were made to existing arrangements.