§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the loss of betting duty caused by the cancellation of horse race meetings due to bad whether during the last year.
§ Sir John CopeReceipts from general betting duty in the latest three months, November 1993 to January 1994, were 2.6 per cent. lower than in the same period a year earlier. This compares to an increase of 6 per cent. for receipts in the months May 1993 to January 1994. It is not possible to attribute the fall in receipts specifically to bad weather, but this is likely to have been a factor.