The Gambling Commission is investigating a fourth top Conservative for bets purportedly made concerning the date of the general election day.
The party’s data chief, Nick Mason, has taken a leave of absence after becoming the latest Tory under suspicion from the Gambling Commission for allegedly placing bets on election timing prior to the announcement of the date.
The Sunday Times released the most recent accusations, claiming that hundreds of bets had been made with thousands of pounds in possible prizes. Mason denied any misconduct to the newspaper, according to his representative.
The Conservative Party declared that it was “not permitted to discuss any matters related” to any investigation conducted by the Gambling Commission.
Which other politicians are being investigated, what are the rules on betting for candidates, and what happens next?
Which Conservatives are being investigated?
The first person implicated in the affair was Craig Williams, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary private secretary.
He acknowledged that he placed bets on the election before Mr Sunak made his disclosure after a journalist contacted him.
The 39-year-old Tory candidate for Glyndŵr and Montgomeryshire placed a £100 bet at Ladbrokes with 5-1 odds, which would have rewarded him £500. However, the bet was not reported since the candidate’s name was mentioned as possibly being associated with politics.
The Conservative party’s director of campaigns Tony Lee and a candidate for Bristol and North West, Laura Sanders, are the other two names involved in the scandal.
Cabinet minister Michael Gove said: “The Gambling Commission are looking at Craig and also looking at Laura, and we’ll see what the conclusions are.”
The details of when and how much money were allegedly wagered by either person are unknown.
What are the rules for politicians on betting?
It is against the law for gamblers to use insider knowledge (known as insider trading) to make a bet or to provide someone else with instructions to make a bet on their behalf, under section 42 of the Gambling Act.
Furthermore, it is forbidden for MPs to “cause significant damage to the reputation and integrity of the house”, according to their code of conduct.
A Conservative Party spokesman said: “We have been contacted by the Gambling Commission about a small number of individuals.”
The party stated that, until any of the procedure was completed, it would not be appropriate to make any more comments.
Mr Sunak declared he was “incredibly angry” and vowed to “boot out” anyone discovered to have infringed any gambling regulations.
Speaking at the special election edition of BBC’s Question Time, he said: “It’s a really serious matter – it’s right that they’re being investigated properly by the relevant law enforcement authorities.
“The integrity of that process should be respected. But what I can tell you is, if anyone is found to have broken the rules, not only should they face the full consequences of the law, I will make sure that they are booted out of the Conservative Party.”
In response to these comments, Liberal Democrat spokesperson Munira Wilson said: “If he was truly angry about this scandal, these Conservative candidates would have been suspended.
“He is more interested in taking away young people’s bank accounts if they don’t do National Service than investing in their education.”