October 23, 2012
The Honourable Ted McMeekin
Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs
Government of Ontario
Dear Minister:
We are pleased that you have received our Final Report dated October 15, 2012. We understand that you are eager to release it for public comment.
We further understand that you have shared our Final Report with your colleagues and that collectively the government is prepared to undertake negotiations with the horse racing industry. We fully support both the public release of our Final Report and the urgency of beginning negotiations that we believe will result in a sustainable industry.
We estimated the amount of public investment we believe is required to transition the industry to a sustainable base, subject to good faith negotiations, on an open book basis, with the industry. We feel strongly that publicly releasing some of the estimates contained therein, particularly sensitive financial information concerning the amount of public support required for race tracks, would not be in the public interest today. We advise that this information should be withheld until such time as the government and the industry have concluded their negotiations.
To assist you in this effort to protect the public interest we have attached a copy of our Final Report with the information we believe to be sensitive removed.