Shamed trainer Milton Harris stripped of licence after devastating report reveals ‘bullying’ & ‘inappropriate behaviour’
TRAINER Milton Harris has been stripped of his licence after a committee found he was not a ‘fit and proper person’.
The Grade 1 winner was suspended in November after a number of serious breaches of the terms of his licence.
After a four-day hearing, which was held behind closed doors earlier this month, he was found to have bullied and harassed fellow trainer Simon Earle and having acted inappropriately towards members of staff, including a girl who was ‘between 14 and 16’ at the time.
Harris, 64, was made bankrupt in 2010, and when he was regranted his licence in 2018 the BHA attached a number of conditions concerning his financial dealings.
And in spring 2023, they attached several new conditions after they received complaints from some of his ex-employees.
Among them were conditions that he could not employ young people or ‘adults at risk’ and one which also gave the BHA power to prevent him from attending certain race meetings.
He was found by the licensing committee to be in breach of a number of the conditions and, after hearing evidence from several witnesses, some who could not be identified, the panel said: “We consider that Milton Harris is ungovernable, or at least in the regulatory context, not capable of being regulated.”
The BHA judicial panel outlined details of the trainer’s “campaign of harassment” towards trainer Simon Earle, whose Wiltshire yard is next door to Harris’.
They often shared the same gallops and facilities but, after a handful of disputes, Earle said Harris would often try and intimidate and belittle him in front of others, even challenging Earle to a fight under “Queensberry Rules”, something he said he had done in the past to settle issues.
Earle secretly recorded several confrontations with Harris, during which he used foul and abusive and behaved in a threatening way.
After one exchange at the stable, Harris – who in the past claimed to have dated singer Belinda Carlisle – was recorded saying: “Don’t talk to my staff or get out of the f****r (inaudible). You’re a nobody. You’re a kept man, you c********r. You’re kept. Mummy’s little boy. You’re f*****g useless. You’re useless. Pathetic.”
The panel also found that Harris had “crossed a line” and behaved inappropriately towards a child who worked for him.
They said Harris – who suffered a life-threatening clot on his lungs while holidaying in Thailand in 2022 – regularly sent private WhatsApp messages to the girl, who was in her mid-teens at the time, “expressed adult views” and made jokes which contained “sexual innuendos”.
He would often visit her in the hostel on the yard and the girl said he occasionally made her feel uncomfortable.
Harris denied that he had done anything wrong and that he was acting as a father figure towards the girl, while his travelling head lass, Libby Stone, defended him at the hearing and said she had never heard him use inappropriate language towards staff.
In its judgement, the panel wrote: “We are firmly of the view that the only appropriate conclusion in the light of our findings, the Rules of Racing guidance and the circumstances of the case generally, is that Milton Harris is not a fit and proper person to hold a trainer’s licence because he lacks the personal qualities necessary to do so.”
BHA director of integrity Tim Naylor said: “Some of the details in the Licensing Committee’s decision make for extremely uncomfortable reading.
“Mr Harris’s behaviour over a prolonged period of time fell a long way short of what we expect of a licensed person and, as the Committee found, would cause damage to racing’s reputation if allowed to continue without repercussion.
“We are, therefore, pleased with the Panel’s finding that Mr Harris is not a fit and proper person to hold a licence.”
Harris said: “I’ve just seen the decision of the committee and I’m obviously disappointed.
“My immediate priority is to look after the horses, owners and long-serving staff here.”
Harris had saddled 33 winners this season before having his licence suspended, winning £373,266 for connections.
He enjoyed his best year ever last year, winning £640,683 over jumps.
Harris’ best horse was Knight Salute, who won a Grade 1 hurdle race at Aintree’s Grand National meeting in April 2022.