Licence revoked for top horse trainer Scott Brunton in wake of ATO debt company wind-up

Top Tasmanian horse trainer Scott Brunton has been stripped of his licence in the wake of his company being liquidated amid a tax debt.

Top Tasmanian horse trainer Scott Brunton has had his licence revoked by the Office of Racing Integrity.

Top Tasmanian horse trainer Scott Brunton has been stripped of his licence – and will need to find alternative arrangements for the 100 horses at his Seven Mile Beach stables.

On Tuesday, the Office of Racing Integrity announced it had revoked the thoroughbred trainer’s licence, effective as of September 8.

The office said the few days’ lead-time would allow Mr Brunton time to make arrangements in relation to horses under his control.

The decision comes following an assessment in respect of Mr Brunton’s “suitability to remain licensed” under Tasmanian rules of racing, and following a decision last month by the Federal Court of Australia to liquidate his company.

Director of Racing, Justin Helmich, said he’d made the decision to revoke Mr Brunton’s licence following an assessment of whether he was a “fit and proper person” to hold such a licence.

“It’s a broad assessment of his propriety based around the Federal Court matter,” he told this masthead.

The Mercury previously reported Mr Brunton’s company, of which he was the sole director, had been wound up amid a tax debt.

Mr Brunton disputed he owed the Australian Taxation Office $1 million, instead claiming the true figure was closer to $600,000.

He also said the collapse of his company was unrelated to his personal capacity as a trainer.

Following last month’s company wind-up announcement, Mr Brunton confirmed he had laid off his staff but continued to work to provide welfare and upkeep to the horses in his stables.

He said he hoped either his partner or father-in-law would incorporate a new company to take over Brunton Racing’s operations.

Stable star The Inevitable is among the horses that have been transferred into the name of Brunton’s partner Tegan Keys.

The 2019 Silver Eagle winner was an acceptor for last Saturday’s Group 1 Memsie Stakes at Caulfield but was withdrawn from the $750,000 race due to transport difficulties.

“The Office of Racing Integrity has been assisting in the orderly transition of horses under the control of the liquidated company to other trainers, including some horses to Ms Keys,” Mr Helmich said.

“Any future applications by Mr Brunton will be subject to an assessment to determine if he meets the requirements to be considered a fit and proper person, relevant to the licence applied for.”

Independent Member for Clark Kristie Johnston MP said “I have been making the case for some time that the racing industry, across all three codes, has lost its social licence and the confidence of the Tasmanian people”.

“Today (Tuesday) we see that the Office of Racing Integrity (ORI) has finally done its job, and stripped the licence from leading trainer, Scott Brunton,” she said.

“Months ago I alerted the racing minister to the fact that Scott Brunton was allowed to train horses when he was clearly in financial difficulty and therefore not a fit and proper person to hold a licence.

“Although the Office of Racing Integrity knew of the financial problems at Brunton’s stables over a year ago, it has taken to now for it to act in the wake of a winding up order by the Tax Office for unpaid tax of approximately $1million.”

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