Company doctor takes on racecourse role.
David James, the man credited with rescuing several ailing businesses, including the Millenium Dome, has been appointed chairman of Racecourse Holdings Trust, the owner of 13 racecourses in Britain.
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The company doctor, whose rescues also include Dan Air, British Shoe Corporation and LEP and was credited as the whistleblower in the Iraqi supergun affair, has been appointed at a time when the horse racing industry is in major turmoil.
Although his position at RHT, which owns courses such as Newmarket, Aintree and Cheltenham, is not considered another company rescue he will have to guide the trust through an Office of Fair Trading led shake-up. The moves are likely to see the Jockey Club, owners of RHT, replaced as regulator of and operator of racecourses by the Horseracing Regulatory Authority.