The Horserace Betting Levy Board (HBLB), commonly abbreviated to the Levy Board, is a
non-departmental public body
In the United Kingdom, non-departmental public body (NDPB) is a classification applied by the Cabinet Office, Treasury, the Scottish Government and the Northern Ireland Executive to public sector organisations that have a role in the process of n ...
of the
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
. It is a statutory body established by the
Betting Levy Act 1961 and is now operating in accordance with the provisions of the
Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Act 1963 (as amended).
Unlike some other non-departmental public bodies, the Levy Board receives no central Government grant-in-aid or
National Lottery funding. Instead, it is required by the Act to collect a statutory levy from the
horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...
business of bookmakers which it then distributes for the improvement of horse racing and breeds of horses and for the advancement of
veterinary science
Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...
and education.
In the year to 31 March 2021, levy yield was £82m, down from £97m in the previous year. This was due principally to the temporary suspension of racing during April and May 2020 following the COVID-19 outbreak. Despite an anticipated fall in income, the Levy Board agreed to make contributions to racing significantly above normal during that year, drawing on its reserves, meeting additional regulatory costs incurred in relation to staging race fixtures, issuing loans and increasing its grants to race prize money. The latter made up partially for the reduced contributions from racecourses arising from the absence of paying crowds at race meetings for most of the year.
In a normal year, the largest share of the levy is spent on race prize money, but it also provides funding for regulation and integrity services, racing and breeding industry training and education, projects for the benefit of the thoroughbred horse, loans to racecourses for capital projects and resources for various other activities pursuant to the organisation's statutory objectives.
Chairs
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Field Marshal The Lord Harding (1963–1967)
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The Lord Wigg (1967–1972)
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Sir Stanley Raymond (1972–1974)
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Sir Desmond Plummer (1974–1980)
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Sir Ian Trethowan (1980–1991)
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Sir John Sparrow (1991–1999)
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Robert Hughes CBE (1999–2008)
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Paul Lee OBE (2009–2020)
*
Paul Darling
Paul Antony Darling is an English commercial law barrister, King's Counsel and current chair of the Horserace Betting Levy Board.
Early life and education
Darling grew up in Cleadon in County Durham and went to Tonstall School in Sunderland ...
OBE QC (2020– )
References
External links
Horserace Betting Levy Board
Horse racing organisations in Great Britain
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
Non-departmental public bodies of the United Kingdom government
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