Legco passes bill to tax Jockey Club extra HK$12bn
Lawmakers have passed a bill to charge the Hong Kong Jockey Club an extra HK$12 billion in tax on its football betting earnings over the next five years.  The amendments to the Betting Duty Ordinance came after Financial Secretary Paul Chan unveiled plans in his budget this year to impose a HK$2.4 billion annual levy on the club for five years, to help improve the government's fiscal situation. The club had reservations about the additional tax, but legislators backed the move via a show of hands. New People's Party chairwoman Regina Ip said the government did not have a lot of options when it came to raising taxes and the special football betting duty will have a minimal impact. "Only the Hong Kong Jockey Club would be affected...The profit increase in football betting for the Hong Kong Jockey Club has far exceeded that of horse racing," Ip said.  DAB lawmaker Vincent Cheng described the levy as a contingency measure and agreed that the club will be able to cope with it. Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui said the administration had taken into account factors such as how affordable the move was for the club and the external competition faced by the local football betting business.