British Horse Racing Leaders Agree on New Governance Structure

A restructuring of the British Racing Authority (BHA)’s corporate governance agreements that will allow for the development and implementation of a new industry strategy to secure the future of the industry was agreed during the extraordinary general meeting (EGM) of the Racecourse Association today.

Setting the Future Direction of Horse Racing

The EGM of the Racecourse Association on Monday, November 14, 2022, saw the leaders of British racing reach an agreement for the creation of a new governance structure for the sport. Following the signing of a special resolution and a new Members’ Agreement by the sport’s Member bodies, a new Articles of Association will be adopted.

Hailing the new development as “an important step along the road to developing an industry strategy to secure the future prosperity of racing in Britain,” BHA’s chief executive Julie Harrington outlined the credentials of the new structure.

“This new structure [will] not only provide a platform upon which progress can be established but also clarifies the BHA’s role as the sport’s governing body and regulator, ” Harrington continued, expressing confidence on behalf of the members at the Recourse Association and The Thoroughbred Group that the new structure “will lead to better-informed decisions on commercial and strategic matters.”

The new governance structure will step on three pillars – a standing committee of the BHA’s Board, a new Commercial Committee and Integrity Committee, and a new Industry Programme Group – as all three working in sync are expected to drive forward the areas representing strategic interests of the sport.

Areas of Strategy Responsibility

Following the agreement reached during a meeting of the Industry Strategy Group in September, the new strategy’s development and delivery will be spearheaded by the BHA, and the new governance structure is designed to have a key role.

The Commercial Committee is set to oversee the work of three groups – the Fixtures and Funding Group, Racing Group and Gambling Strategy Group – and develop the racing product, promotion of the sport, initiatives around owners and bettors, as well as other areas of the industry strategy with a commercial focus. The Commercial Committee will meet every month.

The Integrity Advisory Committee will be responsible for providing strategic advice to the executive and acting on matters relating to the integrity of the sport by making recommendations to the Board. The Integrity Advisory Committee will meet four times a year.

The Industry Programme Group will contribute to strategy on matters such as horse welfare, industry people, equality, diversity and inclusion, corporate social responsibility, social license, and environmental sustainability. The Industry Programme Group will meet at least six times a year.