The Oamaru Jockey Club will hold a meeting on Thursday to seek a common approach and response to the Messara report.
The Messara report, written for the Government by Australian racing identity John Messara, was released in late August and outlined proposals to shake up the racing industry. It suggested outsourcing the TAB's commercial activities to an international operator, reducing the number of thoroughbred racetracks from 48 to 28 and constructing three new all-weather tracks at Cambridge, Awapuni and Riccarton.
The report has been highly criticised by many in the industry, especially over the closure of racetracks in rural areas.
Oamaru Jockey Club president John Foley said the meeting would be a chance for everyone connected in the racing industry to get together and find some common ground over the report.
The Oamaru course is one of seven in the South which has been targeted for closure.
Foley said it was not just about Oamaru. All clubs and stakeholders in the industry were welcome to the meeting which will start at 1pm.
New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing chief executive Bernard Saundry has accepted an invitation to speak, along with National's racing spokesman, Ian Mckelvie.
Foley said invitations had been extended to the Deputy Prime Minister and Racing Minister Winston Peters but it had not been confirmed whether he will be attending. New Zealand First MP Mark Patterson has also been invited.
Foley said the meeting was not a witch hunt as the Messara report had some good points in it.
But he felt the closing of rural tracks would have a huge impact on the rural community, not just on the racing community.
The meeting will be chaired by Foley who is hopeful 200 people will attend.
A submission would be collated at the end of the meeting to be presented as a co-ordinated response to the Messara report.
