The review of the Thoroughbred Racing Act 1996, now underway under the leadership of Brad Hazzard, is long overdue. For too long, the structure of the Act — and the governance culture it has created — has allowed Racing NSW to operate with little scrutiny, and even less fairness, when it comes to supporting regional racing.
Racing NSW boasts about record surpluses and record returns — a $12.9 million operating surplus and over $400 million distributed to participants this year alone. But look closer, and you’ll see a system that’s stacked in favour of the metropolitan elite, while country trainers, owners, and clubs are left scrambling to survive.
In the New England and across regional NSW, country racing isn’t just a pastime — it’s an industry, an employer, and the lifeblood of local communities. Yet the distribution of prizemoney tells a very different story.
City meetings are awash with multi-million-dollar races, while regional clubs are expected to make do with barely enough to cover costs. Trainers in Tamworth, Armidale, Scone, Gunnedah, Dubbo and elsewhere are paying the same rising costs for feed, fuel, and staffing as their city counterparts, but with a fraction of the return.
That’s not equity. That’s exploitation — and it’s happening under the very governance framework the Thoroughbred Racing Act was meant to regulate.
Racing NSW has become far too powerful and far too city-centric. The Act gives enormous discretion to the Board, yet there are limited checks and balances to ensure regional voices are genuinely represented. This review must ask the hard questions: Who is benefiting, who is missing out, and why has this imbalance been allowed to continue for so long?
Regional participants have every right to feel that the system is rigged against them. For decades, the bush has carried the sport — producing the horses, the workers, and the passion that fuel the industry — while Sydney takes the credit and the cash.
This isn’t about envy; it’s about fairness and sustainability. If country racing collapses under financial strain, the whole sport collapses with it.
Labor’s commitment to fairness and regional opportunity should guide this review. It’s time for a reset — one that recognises the contribution of country participants and redistributes prizemoney and governance power accordingly.
Brad Hazzard’s review offers a rare opportunity to rein in Racing NSW, restore transparency, and build a structure that reflects the whole of New South Wales — not just Randwick and Rosehill.
Because the truth is simple: without country racing, there is no racing. And if this review doesn’t deliver a fair go for the bush, the Act will have failed the very people it was meant to protect.
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