Burgess: Reinstate SARP

Published: February 26, 2013 09:30 am EST

Robert Burgess has renewed his call for the slots-at-racetracks program to be left in effect beyond its scheduled March 31, 2013 termination date.

In a letter addressed to Premier and Agriculture Minister Kathleen Wynne, Finance Minister Charles Sousa and Rural Affairs Minister Jeff Leal, Robert Burgess gave a grim outlook for Ontario's horse racing industry and the provincial treasury if the Ontario Lottery & Gaming Corp.'s modernization strategy goes forward without horse racing playing the same vital part it has for the past decade.

In his letter, Burgess notes that - as seen in other jurisdictions - slot machine play at the OLG's racetrack locations is up 10 to 20 per cent on days with live racing, a statistic that according to Burgess could cost the province $50 million per year if live race dates are slashed and tracks cease to exist.

Burgess's letter appears in its entirely below or is available here.


Tags
Have something to say about this? Log in or create an account to post a comment.