Conference told of falling turnovers

Press, 13 July 1985, Page 26

Conference told of falling turnovers

From

J. J. BOYLE

Wellington Three-quarters of the way through the present season racing clubs were looking at a drop of approximately 3 per cent in on-course turnover on a direct comparison with the previous season, the president of the New Zealand Racing Conference, Mr Bernie Kelly, told delegates at the annual meeting in Wellington yesterday. Auckland and Waikato District clubs were running at 4.18 per cent less than in the previous season, Central Districts clubs at 3.11 per cent less and South Island clubs at 0.91 per cent greater. It was not envisaged that those trends would alter to any marked degree by the end of the season, said Mr Kelly, who emphasised that with the present economic outlook clubs would need to secure maximum benefit from every advantage they could for the coming season. Mr Kelly said that in 1983 on-course turnover had increased by 2.63 per cent and in 1984 had increased 10.36 per cent. Of similar concern to dropping on-course turnovers was the fact that offcourse turnover on galloping meetings, which rose by

11.93 per cent in 1983 and 11.98 per cent in 1984 had slowed to a 6.76 per cent rate of increase to the end of April, 1985, Mr Kelly said. In addition clubs faced a year when their own costs would rise with increased fuel, interest, maintenance and labour charges. The Goods and Services Tax would involve cost increases for clubs at a level that noone could accurately predict. “Its impact at this stage on the racing industry is far from certain and will depend on political decisions yet to be taken,” Mr Kelly said. “Clubs should also note with concern predictions from a number of economic sources that real disposable income will decline in the year to March, 1986. A drop of nearly 4 per cent has been predicted in some quarters.” Mr Kelly said that in such a situation racing’s promotional efforts took on an increased importance. It was clear that racing needed a major product improvement and the Conference’s executive felt that inter-track betting would provide that. The delay in the decisions that had to be made in regard to intertrack betting and the conse-

quent delay in its implementation had been particularly frustrating, Mr Kelly said. Mr Kelly said his executive committee had with great reluctance supported the increases in the total deduction on exotic betting in the present season. However, of critical importance to the committee in determining its decision, was the commitment of the Minister of Internal Affairs that it was an interim measure pending a complete review of the industry. As an interim measure the executive felt that the opportunity to inject some muchneeded growth into stakes and also to provide muchneeded funds for the amenities account could not be rejected. The new Racing Authority classification of racecourses was a natural successor to the financial changes that had been made four months previously, Mr Kelly said. The executive committee had been consulted by the Authority as to the implementation of such a policy and had no difficulty in agreeing strongly with the principles involved. Arguments as to the merits of individual gradings should not cloud the very real worth of the over-all policy. Little that was productive could be achieved in debating the rights and wrongs of individual classifications, Mr Kelly said.