Betfred is the winning bidder for the Tote
3 June 2011
UK-based bookmaker Betfred has been selected to buy the Tote after an auction procedure that started in November.
BBC company editor Robert Peston said Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt had chosen Betfred although the offer had not been completed, with some technicalities still being figured out.
The cost is not yet known however Betfred is believed to have bid about ₤ 200m.
Half of the cost will go to the racing industry and racing charities, and the majority of the rest will go to the federal government.
The racing industry might be dissatisfied, due to the fact that it was understood to have actually chosen the rival quote from SIP, a consortium led by British Airways chairman Martin Broughton.
Successive governments have been trying to privatise the Tote for about 14 years, but have never ever come this promotion code close to doing so.
The government is hoping that the bet9ja's welcome offer will not fall nasty of EU state aid guidelines or be reversed by a judicial evaluation.
Jockey opposition
The Tote was set up 83 years ago to provide a safe haven for punters, controlled by the state, and beyond the reach of illegal bookmakers.
It takes pleasure in a monopoly of horse race pool-betting in exchange for a warranty that money was pumped back into the sport.
The Tote is based in Wigan, with more than 4,000 personnel, and presently injects half its profits into racing.
In 2015, Chancellor George Osborne assured to protect worth for taxpayers while acknowledging the support the Tote provided to the market.
the yohaig code Tote gave nearly ₤ 19m to horse racing in 2010.
Efforts over the previous three years to bet9ja's welcome offer off the Tote hit issues, and the government deals with getting a lower price than the ₤ 400m mooted in 2007.
The Jockey Club opposes the sale and wants the Tote to stay independent.
the yohaig code Tote has 517 High Street betting shops and the monopoly to run swimming pool wagering online and at 60 racecourses in the UK.
