ILLEGAL BETTING

Taranaki Daily News, 5 August 1931, Page 9

ILLEGAL BETTING

"THIS MISERABLE PRACTICE.” ■ ■ ’ . • — 1 ' GROWTH OF TAXATION. .Masterton, August 3. Thorough agreement with the statement recently made by the Chief Jus-? tice, Sir Michael Myers, with regard to the bookmaker, was expressed by Mr. W. Howard Booth, president of the Cartefton Racing Club, speaking at the anmfal meeting of the club. Mr, Booth said it seemed to him absolutely farcical that bookmakers .and their agents in every village throughout the length and breadth of the country should be allowed to operate and flout the-laws of the State. “If the money, with or without, shall I say, legitimate taxation, were placed on the tbtalisator, racing clubs, many of them, at any rate, would not be in the wretched position they are : in to-day,” said Mr. Booth., In his Opinion, he added, the telegraphing of money to the totalisator would largely obviate “this miserable practice.” In every part of the country there were hundreds of people unable to attend race meetings who, desiring to make modest investments, were debarred by the State from doing so. Mr. Booth also referred to the question of taxation on racing, quoting fignres’showing how taxation had been levied during the past two seasons. In the 1929-30 season the total amount collected in taxation was £405,403 18s. 2d., and for the 1931 season, notwithstanding an increase in’ratos of taxation, the sum of. £349,666 os. lid. was collected —a shortage compared with.the previous year of £55,742 17b. 3d. The total taxation now required amounted to 17.5. per cent'.,, equal to 3s. 4jd. in every £l. Of this amount the Government received Is. I.OJd. and the clubs Is. 6d. out of every £1 invested. Tlfe Government tax was

collected by the club at no expense to * the CJdvernhieut, and the net return to the club did not exceed an average of 6 per cent. As would be aeon from the figures he . quoted, and with the strenuous times they were passing through, racing clubs generally would not be able to show profits, and many of the smaller clubs must go out of existence, for the time heing, at any fate. 1