A Call To Action

Published: February 14, 2012 06:26 pm EST

Standardbred Canada is strongly encouraging all members of Ontario’s immense harness racing community to stand united and make your voice heard for the future of horse racing in the province

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Yesterday, Finance Minister Dwight Duncan suggested that in light of tomorrow’s release of the Drummond report, the provincial government is planning to review the Slots at Racetracks partnership between racetracks and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation.

Today, Ontario represents the heart of Canadian horse racing.

  • 60,000 Ontarians are employed by the province’s racing industry.
  • Horse racing produces 1.5 billion dollars of wages and salaries each year in Ontario.
  • The horse racing industry is the second largest sub-sector of Ontario’s agricultural economy with an economic contribution in excess of wheat, eggs, poultry and hogs in 2010.

“Now is the time for all of us to tell the Ontario government -- and the rest of Ontario -- why the OLG partnership is of such great benefit to the province as a whole,” said Standardbred Canada CEO John Gallinger. “It is vitally important that we stand up for the livelihoods of Ontarians, and for their significant contribution to the Ontario agricultural, economic, and entertainment industries. It is also vital that we point out the immense benefits that horse racing brings to the Ontario economy.”

STAND STRONG. STAND UP. STAND UP FOR HORSE RACING IN ONTARIO.

Get on Facebook. Get on Twitter. Get on your email account. Get a pen and paper. Get this message out to the rest of the province -- and to the rest of the country -- in any way that you can to show Ontarians how important this issue is to you - and to them.

Remind them that:

  • Over the last decade, annual expenditures by the horse racing industry in Ontario have increased by 67% to $2 billion in 2010 from $1.2 billion in 2000.
  • Approximately 80% of this expenditure occurs in Ontario’s rural agriculture communities where it provides much needed economic growth.
  • The government share from Ontario’s horse racing revenue has increased by 27% over the last 10 years, with the province of Ontario receiving $261 million dollars a year from our industry... not including OLG profits from slot machines.
  • Horse racing has played a vital role in this province for more than 150 years.

“We need to let the people of Ontario know that a vibrant horse racing industry not only makes significant contributions to government revenues, but to the health and economic prosperity of our province’s rural communities as well," said Standardbred Canada Chair Tammy McNiven. "We are not only talking about wagering here... we are talking about tens of thousands of real people -- real farmers, real horsemen and horsewomen and their children -- to whom this OLG partnership means food on the table and a roof over their heads.”

WHAT NOW?

Send this call to action to everyone you know, and then act on it yourself.


WHAT TO WRITE?

Send the above message, or use the information in it to draft your own personal message. Share it through Facebook, Twitter, email, and/or written letter to friends, colleagues, your local newspapers and news stations, your local MPP, Finance Minister Dwight Duncan, Premier Dalton McGuinty, and opposition leader Tim Hudak.

For more information on the partnership between racetracks and the Ontario government, visit:
http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/news/2-13-12/ontario-review-racing-par…
http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/sites/default/files/Horse-Racing-Partn…
http://www.ohria.com/sites/default/files/OHRIA%20Economic%20Impact%20St…

Send your message here:
http://www.fin.gov.on.ca/en/about/contactus/

Or via direct email to Dwight Duncan here:
[email protected]

You may want to CC Tim Hudak, leader of the opposition here:
[email protected]

And don’t forget your local MPP too!
http://www.ontla.on.ca/web/members/members_current.do


WHAT TO TWEET?

60,000 jobs are attributed to the #OntarioHorseRacing and breeding industry. Retweet, spread the word! http://goo.gl/Cu9xj

Gov't revenues from the #OntarioHorseRacing industry are up 27% in the last decade! Retweet! http://goo.gl/Cu9xj

#OntarioHorseRacing & breeding industry is the 2nd largest subsector of agriculture economy! Retweet! http://goo.gl/Cu9xj

80% of #OntarioHorseRacing's expenditures occur in and support rural communities! Retweet! http://goo.gl/Cu9xj

#OntarioHorseRacing 60,000 jobs, $261 million to provincial government, $138 million to local municipalities. Retweet! http://goo.gl/Cu9xj

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