In a strongly worded letter to Premier Dalton McGuinty, Perth-Wellington MPP Randy Pettapiece is calling on the Liberal government to reconsider its surprise cancellation of the Slots at Racetracks program.

“Your government’s decision will cause devastating ripple effects far beyond the horse racing industry alone, and will damage our regional economy,” Pettapiece wrote to the Premier. In its March budget, the government cancelled the agreement to give back 10 percent of slots profits to the racing industry. By cancelling the program, the government is cancelling the industry itself, Pettapiece believes.

“If there were no horse racing industry, there would be no revenue for the government to collect in the first place,” he explained. “This is not a subsidy, as the McGuinty government has falsely claimed.”

Estimates show the industry supports about 60,000 full-and part-time jobs across the province. Dr. Bob Wright, formerly of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, believes that the McGuinty government’s decision will mean the loss of at least 40 percent of the industry, “right off the bat.” He also calculates that $1.2 to 2.4 billion would be lost in economic impact.

On May 29, Pettapiece attended a public meeting organized by the County of Wellington to discuss the future of the industry. About 200 people attended that meeting in the courtyards of the county museum, where speakers expressed opposition to the government’s move; they also shared personal stories about how the loss of the industry would affect them.

On the same day that Pettapiece hand-delivered his letter to the Premier, the government announced the creation of a panel to “work with the industry to help develop a vision for the future.” Pettapiece is skeptical of the Liberals’ motives.

“They’re just trying to take some of the heat off from their own bad decision,” Pettapiece said of the government. “If they hadn’t cancelled this program – which was seen internationally as a model of success – there would be no need for a panel.”

The decision on horse racing, Pettapiece believes, is just another example of a government unconcerned with the interests and values of rural and small-town Ontario.

“We need your government to stop targeting rural Ontario, as you did in cancelling the Slots at Racetracks program, and focus on improving the economy to benefit everyone in our province, rural or urban,” he wrote.

(Pettapiece.ca)