AMENDMENT URGENT

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 49, 26 August 1931, Page 6

AMENDMENT URGENT

; GAMING LEGISLATION (By Telegraph.) (Special to "The Evening Post.") ■•- PALMEESTON' N;> This Day. -That, the-time -had'arrived when an alteration.:to;.'.the gaming-ja'wsjof the Dominion-: was essential if.-.the sport was to continue, was the. opinion advanced by the' president of the. Manawatu Racing Club,' Mr. C. Louisson, in his address.to the annual meeting of-members of the club'last evening. It1 was'imperative, he said, that the ruling Government introduce a Bill to protect the public,. racing clubs, and also totalieator revenue. ...^ , The telegraphing oijnoney 'to" the course nDdthet publication .-of-dividends, he went ion,:.-would increase , both , totalisator and ■telegraphic revenue, be pf..benefit to the (joverwment, and enable clubs to cater Jnorc freely for owners, 'who should receive the first, consideration,,for without ■ibem there would' be. .lio'vacing" whatever. Considering thij desperate position of all clubs,. the.. Government shp.uld assist by liassiug the legislation indicated, Taxation on racing is beyoivil,'the limit that clubs and their patroris'can afford, lie said. Although, relief had been., promised IVya .pVeviovis'Gbverninent from war taxation, this had'not■ been''-giveri/,'but instead ■an extra 2%. pet-cent:' ion; totalisator tax had been imposed. - •: . -

"After allowing the usual and reasonable expenditure connected with a race meetInn," he declared, "a cliih should at least be able to balanco its meetjno before Government tax should take;effect; and unless something is done by the Government to relieve olubs the result will be the gradual extinction of some, anil the remainder can only carry on uniler the greatest difficulties."

Jt should be recognised, he concluded this section of his address, that although racing is. a sport it'supports a'great number, of -people, and many secondary industucs are "directly interested in its wel-iat-p.. Our politicians should lake a tooi-c ■logical ;yiew, ,-md encourage the sport in- ■ nfciid of.imposing taxation that will defeat its own ends. .. ..!