1. The British Horseracing Board (BHB) is the governing authority for horseracing in Great Britain. This submission is made on behalf of all those who invest in and/or make a living from the Racing and Breeding Industries and is fully endorsed by the Jockey Club, the body responsible for the regulation of Racing and Point-to-Pointing. The full list of BHB’s constituents is attached as Appendix A. BHB is a member of the British Horse Industry Confederation, which is also submitting evidence to the Inquiry.

2. In this submission, BHB focuses its comments on the likely impact on Racing and Point-to-Pointing of a ban on hunting with dogs. Any aspect outside this area has been left to those more directly concerned. In essence BHB’s views remain as they were at the time of the 1997 Wild Mammals (Hunting with Dogs) Bill promoted by Michael Foster MP.

3. BHB believes that a ban on hunting with dogs would severely undermine the present scale of Point-to-Pointing, and that this in turn would have a damaging impact on British Racing, hitting quality, the bloodstock industries, reducing the number of runners, cutting revenue and threatening jobs.

4. Point-to-Pointing is an amateur form of steeplechasing, regulated by the Jockey Club. To qualify to race in a Point-to-Point a horse must have been hunted a minimum of seven times in the current season. Certification to this effect is issued by the relevant Hunt and lodged with the Jockey Club. A total of 4,106 horses qualified with 190 Hunts in 1999.

5. Each Point-to-Point rider is required to be a member of or subscriber to a recognised Hunt. In 1999 the Jockey Club issued 1,084 riders’ qualification certificates.

6. At the present time Point-to-Pointing is a vibrant and popular sport attracting crowds totalling around 700,000 every year. Point-to-Points are designed in part to raise funds for the organising hunt, but also to provide a competitive arena for the participants and a fun day out in the countryside for the spectators. The audience takes in a wide cross section of the population of all ages, attracting both rural and urban based families. In 2000 there are 209 meetings programmed, held at around 120 different venues around the country. Every meeting is well attended by bookmakers, refreshment vendors, stall holders selling clothing and equestrian items, and sideshows.

7. Point-to-Pointing is a sport in its own right, but it also acts as a nursery bringing on both equine and human talent into Racing.

8. Point-to-Pointing is used to introduce young jump horses to competitive racing and many go on to race under professional Rules racing. Around 10% of National Hunt (or Jump) runners had previously been Point-to-Pointing. The sport also gives a rewarding occupation for horses retiring from professional Racing yards.

9. Point-to-Point riders often progress to riding under Rules and one of the criteria for an amateur jockey’s licence is experience of Point-to-Pointing. The best amateurs turn professional: some 20% of winning professional National Hunt jockeys gained their first successes over Point-to-Points.

10. Many of Racing’s owners, professional and permitted (ie limited to training for themselves or immediate family) trainers initially came into the Industry through Point-to-Pointing, which also offers opportunities for people to gain experience as race officials before going on to full and part time jobs within Racing.

11. A selection of prominent horses, jockeys and trainers whose careers began in British Point-to-Pointing is shown in Appendix B.

12. Point-to-Point organisers, owners and riders believe that as a minimum at least one quarter of Point-to-Point venues would close as a consequence of the cessation of hunting in an area and the subsequent lack of interest of landowners. It is hoped that the remainder might continue under a different management structure, but this cannot be said with confidence. In any case, closures are unlikely to be spread evenly across the country.

13. Such a shrinkage in Point-to-Pointing opportunities is estimated to lead to a drop of at least 25% in the total numbers of people and horses participating in the sport. It is also possible that, with reduced interest, those meetings that did survive could well face problems in managing events properly and ensuring the requisite level of integrity and equine welfare.

14. The most immediate effect on Racing of a scaling down of Point-to-Pointing would be in the area of Hunter Chases. These are steeplechases run under the Rules of Racing which are confined to horses that have been hunted in the current season, most of whom will have graduated through Point-to-Points. Hunter Chases comprise 9.5% of the steeplechase programme and virtually all National Hunt courses stage at least one during the season. Hunter Chases are attractive to punters, with fields averaging 10.5 runners compared with an average of 7.8 for other steeplechases.

15. The predicted contraction in Point-to-Pointing would lead to a reduction in the number of horses needed by at least a quarter, something in excess of 1,000, without taking into account the overall effects on the demand for and value of horses generally that a ban on hunting might entail.

16. This reduced demand would inevitably affect British breeders. Around 1,500 purpose-bred National Hunt horses are born in this country each year. Some of these go, at four or five years old, directly into National Hunt training yards, some are introduced to Racing through Point-to-Pointing and others are kept just for hunting and Point-to-Pointing. Without this alternative activity, the incentive for breeders to produce good National Hunt stock would diminish, further worsening the problem of small field sizes in National Hunt races. It is also likely that, as the British National Hunt breeding industry declined, the advantage would be further taken by Irish breeders, who already enjoy significant tax benefits denied to their British counterparts.

17. Each year, several thousand horses leave Racing at the conclusion of their racing careers and those which are not used for breeding need to be found a suitable alternative occupation. The two most popular options are hunting and Point-to-Pointing, where one can be sure that the horses will be looked after properly and continue to do what they were bred for, which is to run.

18. Employment associated with Point-to-Points is obviously predominantly rural, involving some 660 trainers, 1,000 stable staff, vets, farriers, transporters, feed and forage merchants and a variety of other services including breeders, stud staff and agents. A reduction in the volume of Point-to-Pointing would undoubtedly lead to redundancies and this in turn would damage the economic and social structure of rural communities. A general decline in the national expertise with horses could also be expected.

19. Furthermore, the professional Racing Industry and all support businesses linked both directly and indirectly would be affected. There are currently 523 professional licensed trainers employing over 5,300 stable staff. 56% of trainers are located away from the five main training centres (Newmarket, Lambourn, Middleham, Malton and Epsom). These trainers use local suppliers whose economic viability depends on the existence of sufficient demand, part of which arises from the local Hunt.

20. The majority of professional trainers away from the major centres run relatively small operations with narrow profit margins, Any contraction in the number of businesses supplying essential services to trainers is likely to increase costs and thus threaten their livelihoods as well as those of their employees.

21. Annual costs per horse have been estimated at £5,000, so that a contraction of 25% would amount to a withdrawal of over £5m from the rural economy on account of the reduction in Point-to-Pointing alone, without taking into consideration the direct consequences of a ban on hunting itself.

22. As the reduction in the number of National Hunt horses began to take effect, an adverse impact on National Hunt field sizes and thus on General Betting Duty and levy yields could be expected.

23. Recognising that local hunts form the supporting structure for Point-to-Pointing, BHB would endorse the statistics put forward by the Countryside Alliance on the number of horses and ponies used in hunting. In the knowledge of the contribution made by the Racing Industry to the rural economy, BHB would also endorse the estimates of employment and expenditure, both capital and maintenance, engendered by hunting.

24. BHB believes that a ban on hunting with dogs would impact adversely on Racing and Point-to-Pointing as follows::