RSPCA brand whip changes a 'black day' for racing

Yesterday’s decision by the British Horseracing Authority to make changes to the whip rules has drawn an unimpressed reaction from the RSPCA.

Paul Bittar, the new BHA chief executive, proposed and saw approved a batch of amendments at the organisation’s board meeting including the length of penalties officials can apply to riders overusing the whip.

Rather than it being an automatic breach when a rider uses the whip eight times on the Flat and nine times over jumps, the figures become the trigger point for the stewards to review the ride in question, with the new rules set to begin in early March.

Stewards will be given more discretion over deciding how the rider has used the whip, and the severity of the penalty itself.

The revised penalty structure, which will take effect on Thursday, means one strike over the limit will still warrant a two-day ban, but two more will now incur a four-day suspension, rather than five days as at present and repeat offences will be treated on their own merits, rather than multiplying as they do now.

David Muir the RSPCA’s equine consultant said: “It is absolutely staggering that the BHA has taken such a backward step, less than six months after the whip rules were introduced to react to public concern regarding the use of the whip in racing.

“The BHA has not seen fit to discuss the need for such changes with any other of the review stakeholders including the RSPCA and other animal welfare groups, yet they have seen it necessary to change the rules and penalty structure in favour of the jockeys.

“This action flies in the face of scientific research which shows that excessive use of the whip actually increases the likelihood of falls some of which produce injury or fatality apparently supported by the short term statistics available.”

He went on: “This is a black day for the racing industry but the real losers are the horses – jockeys are once again allowed to use the whip excessively without a relatively a strong preventative punitive element.

“We are extremely disappointed that once again the regulatory authority has seen it necessary to change the rules but will monitor the results closely and if these changes prove to compromise the welfare of the racehorse we shall hold the BHA to account.

“Since the new rules limiting the use of the whip were introduced there appears to be a culture of change among jockeys, which was a positive move forward.

“This latest move sees the preventative, punitive, element of the new whip rules reduced even further which gives us real cause for concern.”