The tweet featured a spinning roulette wheel and warned voters about taking a ‘bet’ on Labour – before the Tory campaign boss took a leave of absence as the party faced a gambling probe
The Tories have deleted a tweet warning about a ‘bet’ on Labour after their own party was engulfed in a new betting probe.
A now-removed campaign video, which was posted to the official party account on Wednesday, featured a spinning roulette wheel with the caption “if you bet on Labour, you can never win.” The clip ended with the Tory campaign slogan: “If you think Labour will win, start saving.”
But Rishi Sunak’s already beleaguered General Election campaign has since been thrown into fresh turmoil over allegations of staff betting on the date of the election before it was announced. With only weeks until polling day, the Conservatives’ director of campaigning Tony Lee was forced to take a leave of absence last night amid reports both he and his wife Laura Saunders, candidate for North West Bristol, are being investigated by the Gambling Commission.
It is understood a bet had been placed on the timing of the General Election. Ms Saunders and Mr Lee are the latest people with links to the Tory party or No 10 caught up in allegations about betting on the date of the July 4 contest, after Rishi Sunak’s aide Craig Williams last week apologised for putting a £100 bet on a July election three days before it was announced. Elsewhere, one of the Prime Minister’s police protection officers has been arrested by the Met for a bet on the election.
Speaking to reporters this morning, Levelling Up minister Michael Gove admitted the situation “doesn’t look great” for the Conservatives. On the Tory campaign battle bus in London, he told broadcasters: “Obviously, it doesn’t look great. And, obviously, the conclusions lots of people are drawing are not at all great. But I don’t know all the facts at the moment. I’d be loath to condemn without there being an investigation that’s been concluded.”
Labour and the Liberal Democrats have called for the Tories to suspend both Ms Saunders and Mr Williams. Asked about the Tory director of campaigns taking a leave of absence, Keir Starmer told The Mirror: “It’s astonishing that we’re in this place. However many people have already been identified as potentially involved in this. Rishi Sunak just needs to take action, he needs to account for exactly who knew what.
“But also when you’ve got a candidate standing for election in two weeks who was involved, they’ve got to go. They’ve got to be suspended and I don’t know why he hasn’t done that. I think it is a real measure of his leadership, or lack of leadership”.
A Conservative spokesman said: “We have been contacted by the Gambling Commission about a small number of individuals. As the Gambling Commission is an independent body, it wouldn’t be proper to comment further, until any process is concluded.”
The Gambling Commission said: “Currently the commission is investigating the possibility of offences concerning the date of the election. This is an ongoing investigation, and the commission cannot provide any further details at this time.
“We are not confirming or denying the identity of any individuals involved in this investigation.”