Fee must be fair on all: judge CRAIG YOUNG, SYDNEY
June 17, 2010

RACING NSW is headed back to court, but another stoush with Tabcorp beckons in the wake of yesterday's Federal Court ruling on the NSW government's race fields legislation.

Justice Nye Perram ruled Racing NSW had the power to charge wagering operators under the legislation but deemed the collection process ''discriminatory'' and ''protectionist'', with NSW bookies and the TAB favoured. Racing NSW has collected $60 million from wagering operators from a 1.5 per cent turnover levy, which cuts in after a $5 million threshhold.

Justice Perram found Sportsbet had been discriminated against and ordered Racing NSW to repay $2,061,000 it had collected from the operation.

He dismissed Betfair's claims its business model was being discriminated against with the 1.5 per cent fee on turnover, although it has been asked to make submissions along the Sportsbet track.

''The state may do as it wishes: if it desires to impose a fee on all operators it may do so,'' Justice Perram said in his judgment.

''If it chooses to relieve the TAB of the burden of state taxes and under the RDA [Racing Distribution Agreement] it may do so, too. What it may not do is purport to impose a non-discriminatory and universal fee and then rebate the fee collected to in-state operators. If an equalisation arrangement is truly sought it is to be achieved by reducing in-state burdens to their out-of-state equivalents - that is competition.''

Sportsbet chief executive Matt Tripp described the verdict as ''a good result''. ''More so [it's] a great result for the punters around the country,'' he said.

Tripp hopes Racing NSW ''will stop wasting racing industry money by considering appeals'', a sentiment echoed by Betfair's Andrew Twaits. ''There needs to be a change of attitude on the part of all parties,'' Twaits said.

Justice Perram took a swipe at the Racing NSW board and chief executive Peter V'landys for striking a deal with the TAB in regard to refunding almost $14 million in turnover.

''The capitulation by RNSW was complete and discloses no element of compromise,'' he said. ''This settlement between RNSW and TAB was likely to be repeated in the future.''

Racing NSW chairman Alan Brown described the verdicts as ''a mixed day for racing''.

V'landys could not reveal the nature of the deal struck with the TAB, but added: ''Basically they [Tabcorp] said [they] don't have to pay the [1.5 per cent] fee, but we said they do.

''Rather than have a legal dispute, we settled. What the judge is saying is we shouldn't have settled.''

V'Landys said that now Racing NSW had certainty regarding the legislation, it could sit down and talk with the corporate bookmakers, but added it would appeal elements of the judgment.