Prominent Queensland owner Steve Foster says he will not to buy any more horses to race in Queensland because of prize money cuts.
Foster, who owns 13 horses, including Group One performer Teronado, says the decision to lop $18.8 million off the Queensland prize money budget will force him to race many of his horses in NSW.
“I have told my trainer (Bruce Hill) until this situation changes for the better I will not be buying any more horses to be raced in Queensland,” Foster said.
Foster said while Victoria and NSW were forging ahead with added prize money and incentives, Queensland was in worse shape than ever.
“The provincial tracks will suffer,” he said.
“These cuts will have a direct effect on incomes across the board, trainers won’t be receiving the income so they will have to drop wages for staff, and they won’t be getting horses to train because there is no incentive for owners to buy horses.”
“It goes on from there as I am sure they won’t be putting their hand up at a sale if they are unsure they can find a buyer.”
Foster, a retired businessman, said decreasing expenditure was not the long-term fix.
He said the problems could be corrected by deleting one race per meeting Queensland wide, which would save $24 million, or by an increase in funding from the state government.
The Queensland branch of the Australian Trainers Association has also called for last week’s prize money decision to be overturned.
“It leaves us with a total lack of confidence in the administration of our industry,” the ATA said in a statement.
“At a time when our counterpart states are moving forward in leaps and bounds, the last thing we need now is to be taking backward steps.
“In business you generally have to spend money to make money.
“Owners, breeders and trainers do this constantly, we need the government to see the bigger picture and have the confidence to invest in this fantastic industry.”
Racing Queensland’s acting chief executive Ian Hall said the bottom line was the industry was not earning enough money to sustain current expenditure which included prize money levels.
