RACING:  The on-course bookmakers association has insisted Horse Racing Ireland's (HRI) new one per cent levy will end up having to be passed on to the punter.

The levy on on-course turnover is set to begin at the start of January, and the Irish National Bookmakers Association (INBA) are predicting chaos in the betting ring.

"What it will mean is that people on track will just ring up, get in touch with a server abroad and simply bet without tax that way. The big money is not going to pay," said INBA chairman Francis Hyland yesterday.

"It will be very damaging. There is no way that bookmakers can absorb it. We will have to pass it on to the customer, which in turn will be very damaging for racing. The cash business on track won't be affected but the credit business certainly will," he added.

However, HRI, whose hope for a one per cent increase in off-course tax was ignored by the Minister for Finance, Charlie McCreevy, in Wednesday's Budget, say the new levy should not be passed on to the customer.

"We have had discussions with the bookies and made that clear. It should not be passed on to the punter," said HRI chief executive Brian Kavanagh.

"This is not a big issue. Bookmakers are already paying 0.3 per cent in a levy, so in effect we are looking for 0.7 per cent in an increase.

"We are doing this to try and improve the facilities at our racecourses. At Fairyhouse last Sunday, almost €1.6 million was generated in betting and Fairyhouse itself got only $5,000 out of that," he added.

Hyland said yesterday his organisation has gone back to the HRI board with a submission and pointed out that bookmakers have not yet received official word from racing's ruling body about the new levy.

"It seems unfair to us that the weakest sector of the business is being targeted while, for instance, HRI still don't seem to have come to a conclusion about how they will deal with the betting exchanges. I think a decision should be postponed until HRI have decided on their overall view," Hyland said.

Meanwhile, the ground for the weekend's action at Punchestown looks likely to dry out considerably with the official description now given as "yielding to soft".

The forecast for the next few days is for settled weather. The going had been "soft" up to Wednesday night.

One horse who will not be taking part in Sunday's feature, the John Durkan Memorial Chase, is Barrow Drive, who ran sixth to Strong Flow in the Hennessy Gold Cup just last Saturday.

Trainer Tony Mullins said yesterday: "We are going to avoid all chases where Best Mate or Beef Or Salmon go. Ideally I would like to find a two miles, six furlongs conditions chase for him somewhere, but I have not come across one yet. He has come out of the Hennessy as fresh as a daisy but he won't be sent over three miles plus again."

One horse certain to run, however, is the likely sole-English raider Tiutchev, who will bid to give champion trainer Martin Pipe his first winner in Ireland for 11 years.

The last, Aquilifer in 1992, was also at Punchestown.

The other English-trained entry for the big race, Keen Leader, is more likely to stay at home for his first race of the season.

Paddy Power bet on the Durkan: 11-10 Beef Or Salmon, 3 Native Upmanship, 4 Tiutchev, 6 Keen Leader, 10 Rince Ri, Le Coudray, 20 Bar.