Search
Better Farming OntarioBetter PorkBetter Farming Prairies

Better Farming Ontario Featured Articles

Better Farming Ontario magazine is published 11 times per year. After each edition is published, we share featured articles online.


Ontario's ombudsman won't review provincial decision to end racetrack program

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

by SUSAN MANN

An association representing the province’s harness horse owners and workers is disappointed the Ontario ombudsman won’t investigate the government’s decision to end the slot revenue sharing program.

Brian Tropea, general manager of the Ontario Harness Horse Association, says “we were hoping they were going to investigate. There’s reason to believe there are some questionable decisions being made throughout the gaming modernization.” Tropea says his association was one of the groups that filed a complaint with the ombudsman.

Ontario Ombudsman Andre Marin announced Tuesday his office received more than 350 complaints. The high volume of complaints and the serious concerns complainants raised prompted him to “assign a team of investigators to conduct an in depth assessment of the complaints and issues.”

But in a letter to all those who expressed concerns, Marin says the government’s decision “was a matter of broad public policy, and not the type of decision that would normally be subject to scrutiny by the ombudsman.” He did acknowledge, though, that the government’s decision last March to end the slot revenue sharing program, called Slots at Racetracks, has created enormous uncertainly in the horse racing industry.

Under the slot revenue sharing program ending March 31, 10 per cent of the money went to increasing horse racing purses, a further 10 per cent went to the tracks, five per cent went to the municipality where the track is located and 75 per cent went to the Ontario government. With the new program, slots will be at tracks but tracks will just receive money through lease agreements.

Tropea says there still may be an opportunity to have the government’s decision independently reviewed. Last August a motion proposed by Progressive Conservative MPP Lisa MacLeod (Nepean-Carleton) was passed at Queen’s Park requesting the auditor general review the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation’s gaming modernization plans.

In another development, a motion proposed by New Democratic Party MPP Taras Natyshak (Essex) requests that changes to the Slots at Racetracks program be frozen until after municipal elections next year to give municipalities time to hold referendums on election ballots on whether they want to host casinos. Tropea says that motion is to be debated at Queen’s Park later this month. BF

Current Issue

September 2025

Better Farming Magazine

Farms.com Breaking News

First Northern Cohort Joins Ontario Vet Program

Thursday, September 4, 2025

This September, the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) at the University of Guelph welcomed its inaugural Northern Cohort of 20 students through the Collaborative Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Program (CDVMP). This initiative, created in partnership with Lakehead University, marks a milestone... Read this article online

Canadian Farmers Face Weaker Soybean Yields Ahead

Tuesday, September 2, 2025

Statistics Canada forecasts that Canadian soybean production will decline in 2025, reflecting weaker yields across major producing provinces. Nationally, output is projected to fall by 7.3% year over year to 7.0 million tonnes. The decline is linked to a drop in yields, which are expected... Read this article online

Canadian Corn Outlook Shows Mixed Regional Trends

Tuesday, September 2, 2025

Statistics Canada projects Canadian corn-for-grain production to grow slightly in 2025, despite drier-than-normal weather and high temperatures that have pressured yields. National production is forecast to rise 1.4% year over year to 15.6 million tonnes. This gain comes from higher... Read this article online

BF logo

It's farming. And it's better.

 

a Farms.com Company

Subscriptions

Subscriber inquiries, change of address, or USA and international orders, please email: subscriptions@betterfarming.com or call 888-248-4893 x 281.


Article Ideas & Media Releases

Have a story idea or media release? If you want coverage of an ag issue, trend, or company news, please email us.

Follow us on Social Media

 

Sign up to a Farms.com Newsletter

 

DisclaimerPrivacy Policy2025 ©AgMedia Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Back To Top