Explainer
Who are
the five being investigated over UK election date betting scandal?
Among those
with links to Rishi Sunak or the Tories so far identified are candidates, a Met
police officer and a campaigner
Matthew
Weaver
Sun 23 Jun
2024 17.08 BST
Five people
with links to Rishi Sunak or the Conservative party are being investigated by
the gambling watchdog. Who are they, and what are they being investigated for?
Craig
Williams
The Tory
candidate for re-election in Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr is a key member of the
prime minister’s inner circle. As Sunak’s parliamentary private secretary in
the last parliament, Williams helped the prime minister to manage relations
with MPs.
When the
Guardian revealed on 12 June that Williams had placed a £100 bet on there being
a July election three days before Sunak announced the date in May, Williams
admitted having a “flutter” on the election and said one of his betting
accounts was the subject of inquiries by the Gambling Commission.
The next day
he apologised for the bet, which had odds of 5-1, meaning he could have made
£500, and conceded that he had made a “huge error of judgment”. He has refused
to answer questions about whether he was privy to inside information before
placing the bet.
Police
protection officer
The only
person to have so far faced disciplinary action over the scandal is an unnamed
Metropolitan police officer who is part of Sunak’s close protection security
team. The officer was arrested on 17 June for the alleged offence of misconduct
in public office, after the force was contacted by the Gambling Commission.
When the
matter was referred to the Met’s directorate of professional standards and the
police watchdog, the officer was also removed from operational duties. Details
of any bets placed by the officer have not been disclosed.
Laura
Saunders
Saunders,
who is married to the Conservative’s campaign director. Tony Lee, is standing
for the party in Bristol North West. She became the second prospective
parliamentary candidate to be investigated by the Gambling Commission over an
alleged bet about the timing of the election, the BBC reported last week.
The size and
the timing of Saunders’ alleged bet or bets is not known. Saunders has
confirmed that she is cooperating with the commission and accused the BBC of
breaching her right to privacy. Saunders joined the Conservatives at the age of
18 and has worked for the party since 2015.
Lee, who is
married to Saunders, was appointed as the Tories’ director of campaigning by
Oliver Dowden when he was co-chair of the party. Dowden, who is now deputy
prime minister, told the Conservatives’ spring conference in Blackpool in March
2022 that Lee was part of a “fantastic team” who had “masterminded” Andy
Street’s successful election campaign to be West Midlands mayor the previous
year.
The
Conservative party confirmed that Lee had taken leave of absence after it
emerged that he also was being investigated by the Gambling Commission over an
undisclosed alleged bet or bets.
Nick Mason
On his X
account, Mason describes himself as “data-driven insight evangelist” as well as
a Tory campaigner and the party’s candidate for Jarrow in Tyneside in the 2015
election. He has been party’s chief data officer since 2022 and on Sunday was
named by the Sunday Times as the fourth Conservative to be investigated by the
Gambling Commission.
Like Lee, he
has taken “leave of absence” from the party. He is alleged to have placed
several dozen bets over an unknown period before the date of the snap election
was announced, according to the Sunday Times.
The combined
winnings would have amounted to thousands of pounds, the paper said. A
spokesperson for Mason said it would be inappropriate to comment while the
investigation was under way, but that he denied wrongdoing.
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