Chief Stipe

Wasn't the Lockdown in NZ that saved lives. It was isolating the infected. Test, Track, Trace, Isolate. Basic animal husbandry.

I don't know what your connection is with racing but it certainly isn't a grassroots one. You keep pushing this BS narrative about RITA being different to the NZRB. They're not. They are all the same players that have been feeding in the trough for years. Do some research on each of the Board Members. What have they done in Racing and how successful have they been? As I said EVERY SINGLE ONE of them has had their head in the trough at some stage. As for addressing issues and putting racing on a commercial footing - that is absolute bollocks. They are closing their most profitable tracks, reducing their marketing exposure and are not addressing the core issues that have made them insolvent. If McKenzie and his Board team had any balls they would be breaking the contracts that are crippling the industry. I'm sure Winston would have been up for that scrap. They are hooked into a 10 year contract that is costing them $17m a year plus related costs to support it. It has 7 years to run - that's $119m! That contract isn't the new betting platform which we understand is another $17m a year in licensing. Even though it cost $30m to customise! What's the bet they signed up for 10 years on that one because they thought it was cheaper! First rule in IT NEVER NEVER sign up for long term contracts that involve technology. No he was dead wrong. Many of those people on provincial tracks had put in voluntary hours or donated to their local racing club. They're entitled to lean against the fence. Obviously when it isn't their turn to be behind the bar or the tote. Peter's a charlatan - a Muldoon in brown drag. I remember when I was on course at the 2006 running of the Grp 3 Taranaki Cup. The then Minister of Racing, the Right Honourable Winston Peters was also on course. The horse I had a share in won the Cup. My biggest day in racing - screwed the TAB bookies well and truly - first group race. She was favourite by lunch time raceday having been at $17 fixed odds the night before. Did Winston present the Cup? No. Did he give a speech? No. Where was he during that day? He was seated at a table in the members stand which had the best view of the track with his blonde partner. Free drinks were ferried to him. Did he move all the time he was there. Didn't seem to. Was taken back to the members stand by the Committee carrying the Cup after MY speech. Was shouted a couple of beers plus I needed security when I collected - CASH! Did Winston move and congratulate me? Nup. Just kept drinking his free Whiskey. That was 14 years ago! Sorry I missed that in the Right Honourables announcement. Is RITA going to pay income tax now? Are the bloodstock tax incentives being clawed back?

He's a charlatan. Peter's read the same speech he gave 2 years ago the only difference being the $50m in bailout money. The $20m for two synthetic tracks he and his sidekick Jones allocated two years ago from the PGF fund. Now Galah you post mainly on the Harness forum - how much of the $20m for synthetic tracks did Harness get? Or are harness trainers going to be allowed to train on them? More importantly are the Synthetic Tracks going to be raced on and provide more revenue for the industry? Cambridge's is a training track - are the putting in facilities to hold race meetings? The word is Riccarton's is only a training track too. Is Winnie going to keep pitching up with the operating expenses for these three new tracks? I'm surprised people can't see the contradiction - "tracks need to close" but "I'll build you three new ones." If they are solely training tracks they are hardly going to save the revenue from race meeting abandonments. The race meeting abandonments actually saved the industry money because they weren't budgeted for! Nothing's changed.

Which you would then bet on Australian Metropolitan Races using Betfair.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/120604818/new-model-shows-coronavirus-could-kill-80000-kiwis-without-lockdown

I'm not that old but I run out of data and power regularly! That's been the same Modus Operandi all the way through - remember free-view TV? Remember phone betting? JJ Flash will tell us this is a NEW broom - bollocks it's more of the same! Probably but don't think for a moment there are NO costs. They are hooked into a 10 year contract for a high cost broadcasting platform.

LOL what a crack up! Comrade Adern has just announced that you can have 50 people at a tangi as opposed to 10 which was the original rule. Is that decision based on science, ideology or politics?

But if you factor in the other variables we wouldn't have had the same number of cases or deaths. Let alone the 80,000 deaths that our PM touted. Of those 1,600 deaths how many would be like the 21 that did die? That is gone past the departure lounge and boarding the plane?

Thinking about it a bit more when I do go on course it is for a day out. By race 5 one has to use the person behind the tote window because the pen doesn't work anymore and I can only see the big numbers in the race book and not any fine print. At that stage scratching marks in those little boxes on the betting forms is a lost cause. By then the TAB wants me to bet because I start taking silly bets either because I have a pocket full of winnings or because I've started chasing my losses.

Did anyone notice that $20m of the $72m went to the Thoroughbreds for tracks at Awapuni and Riccarton? Add to that the $10m for the Cambridge synthetic track.

Does Peter's know this? Isn't he all about looking after the Province's? If owners, trainers, drivers are willing to travel shouldn't RITA be able to? My racing heart is losing the will to live.

Tell me how hard would it be to have cheap tablets (about $150 each) in the tote window with a little printer all connected to WiFi using the TAB'S new fantastic online app to take bets? The club's pay for the operators anyway just like they do in pub agency's.

Did you know that the population density of Stockholm is 4 times that of Auckland?

Depends on what narrative you trying to support. Has Sweden had a more deaths per head of population than New Zealand? Is it because they didn't Lockdown or due to other factors? Was New Zealand's lower number of deaths due to Lockdown or its ability to test, identify, track, trace and quarantine Covid-19 cases? Why the significant difference between NZ and Australia?

Assuming you mean with offshore outlets in my opinion this would be impossible to achieve without serious expenditure by the Taxpayer to prevent it.

I certainly don't have any "inside sources" which you seem to quote often. My analysis is done on public information such as annual reports and other data plus a touch of common sense. That will be harder to do now because it seems this new Government era of "complete transparency" does not apply to RITA.

Unless one does an OIA!

Of course the DIA was. RITA isn't because they wouldn't be paying for those compliance costs!

Because instead of revisiting poor strategic decisions made in the past they continue to make decisions today to justify them. For example the very very expensive move towards High Definition broadcasting. The market doesn't want it or need it. BUT they are still manipulating everything to justify that strategic decision. For example the race tracks that are the first to reopen are those that have the expensive infrastructure installed NOT what is best for the industry. If RITA had any balls they would revisit those prior decisions and cut their losses. I'm guessing that they won't because there are too many connections and why embarrass your mates?

I don't understand your question. Raising another point for debate - I note that Winston didn't remind the general public when he handed out the extra cash that RITA is exempt from paying Income Tax? In contrast TABCORP Australia pays Income Tax AND a Dividend to its Shareholders.

The DIA doesn't support the POC charge as they view it as inequitable. ria-dia-may19.pdf

Yeah and didn't do it online either. Rushed out and down to the TAB agency in Petone.

Well it's classic Econ 101. There's an ice-cream stall on the beach where do you set yours up? The answer isn't what most naturally assume. To maximise profits you put it right next door. Unless you have something that is unique to your stall that no one else can copy. Even then because the other stall owner is innovative they will come up with something to counter your uniqueness. So the TAB puts their poorer racing product on the market and charges a higher price than their competitors e.g. the % on their fixed odds books and a higher takeout on their tote product. They even make it harder to buy the product e.g. their new betting app and system. Now they expect the Government to put a special tax on the other icecream stall and force customers to buy off them. The latter they can't do without some pretty heavy legislation and some technical wizardry they haven't got a hope hell of working out. Bit like trying to stop people from buying their books from Amazon. Even you Holey have admitted you punt largely on "Australian Metroplitan race meetings through Betfair." So much for your social conscious and helping out New Zealanders. So Holey the benefit of doing a Science Degree at Lincoln is you HAVE to pass ECON 101, Foreign Trade and Statistcs (Biometrics 101 and 102).

Bloody obvious isn't it? Better quality product at a cheaper price. But you wouldn't understand basic economics.

So NZRB/RITA estimates $30m a year. I believe the DIA estimated much less than that. The Offshore Working Group estimated half that amount at $16m. Some assumptions were made though but most importantly those estimates were based on the number of NZ race meeting and races that were occuring at the time. So you would expect a corresponding the drop in the annual revenue from the two charges. One of the big assumptions made is that those punting overseas from New Zealand are punting on NZ races - we know they are largely not doing that. They are also punting on Australian races - we all know the reasons why they do that.