Budget 2015 — What's in it for sport and recreation

Policy Adviser, Jo Swarbrick, blogs about the latest budget and what measures will have an impact on the sport and recreation sector.

Amidst all the talk of interest rates, inflation and ISAs it would be easy to miss the detail in the budget which may affect sport and recreation.

While it would be disingenuous to claim that our sector gets headline billing in the red book, there were a number of measures announced today which are worth highlighting.

Perhaps of greatest interest are the changes to Gift Aid. The Chancellor announced that, through secondary legislation, the donation threshold up to which charities can claim Gift Aid will rise from £5,000 to £8,000. The detailed Budget document spells it out further, claiming that this will allow ‘charities and Community Amateur Sports Clubs to claim Gift Aid style top-up payments of up to £2,000 a year’. This has the potential to be of significant benefit to all clubs signed up to the CASC scheme. By raising the threshold, clubs collecting for new facilities or fundraising will be able to keep more of the money they raise and invest that back into their activity.

The Chancellor also confirmed the creation of a Horserace Betting Right to replace the Horserace Betting Levy. On the cards for some time, and following a consultation last month, the new Right is a sustainable replacement for the 1963 Levy and will mean that bookmakers pay for the right to bet on British horseracing. With support from across the political spectrum, the new Right will ensure that the commercial relationship between horseracing and bookmakers remains strong, and will help secure the long term financial future of the sport.

Also in the document was an announcement that the current tax rules governing player testimonials will remain unchanged for the time being. HMRC had put out a call for evidence last year, believing that the guidance was being improperly applied and did not reflect other developments in tax legislation. There was growing concern that testimonial income would be taxable as general earnings and would be covered by similar rules governing other voluntary payments like tips for waiters or taxi drivers.

Today’s announcement puts paid to those fears, with the Government announcing that it will preserve the current tax treatment of payments made from sporting testimonials and guarantees that no changes will be made before April 2016.
Beyond that, the Chancellor also announced that the Government will invest £14 million to build a new sports and exercise centre in Sheffield, forming a ‘key part’ of the city’s Olympic Legacy park.

With a budget coming 50 days before a General Election, the vast majority of changes and announcements are always going to be focussed on headline giveaways and vote winning policies. These changes announced today are welcome, and the Alliance will continue to work hard to ensure that sport and recreation remains high on the Government’s agenda.

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