POLITICS AND RACING CONTROL

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 111, 1 August 1927, Page 7

POLITICS AND RACING CONTROL

MINISTER’S ACTION IN GRANTING PERMIT CRITICISED (Special to THE SUN.) HAMILTON, Saturday. ASTONISHMENT at the action of the Hon. R. F. Bollard in the decision made respecting the totalisator permit for the Waikato Hunt Club was expressed this morning by Mr. G. W. Vercoe, president of the Waikato Racing Club, when approached by a SUN representative. Mr. Vercoe felt sure that all true sportsmen would deprecate the pressure of political influence in connection with the control of racing, which control, in his opinion, and undoubtedly of all other sportsmen, could, and should, only be exercised by the governing body, viz., the New Zealand Racing Conference, which was representative of all the Dominion’s racing clubs. POWERS OF CONFERENCE “At its last meeting,” proceeded Mr. Vercoe, “the conference decided by a majority of 30 votes to S that the Waikato Racing Club was entitled to race on Labour Day,” and in that connection he pointed out that while the Minister of Internal Affairs, the Hon. R. F. Bollard, controlled totalisator permits, he had no control in the government of sport, and it was competent for the Racing Conference to refuse any club the right to race, and without that sanction, and the approval of the governing body of racing, no club could function. Reversely, without the totalisator permit, the Waikato Racing Club could not hold a meeting.” Personally, Mr. Vercoe said, he was content to leave the matter in the hands of the Racing Conference, the body which he was thankful to say in all its decisions had solely the interests of racing at heart, and was free from political influence. PLENTY OF PROMISES With respect to the Hon. Mr. Bollard’s statement that he was honouring an undertaking given by him to the Waikato Hunt Club, he declared that if such undertaking were given to all clubs the powers of the conference would be stultified. Further, the Hon. Mr. Bollard had given an assurance to the secretary of the Waikato Racing Club that he would in no way interfere with the decision of the Racing Conference were that body to grant the Waikato Racing Club Labour Day. Mr. Vercoe added that he preferred to make no further comment at present, other than to say he failed to reconcile these two undertakings of the Minister.