The 2024 general election may feel like a lifetime ago, but the Gambling Commission has certainly not forgotten about it. The watchdog has this morning charged 15 people over bets placed on the timing of the national poll – including former Tory MP and ex-parliamentary aide to Rishi Sunak, Craig Williams. Dear oh dear…
The development comes after several political figures faced scrutiny last summer over placing bets on the date of the general election. Last June it emerged that Craig Williams, the Prime Minister’s closest parliamentary aide, placed a £100 bet on there being a July election — just three days before a rain-soaked Rishi Sunak announced the date to the public. Former CCHQ campaign boss Tony Lee has also been charged by the Gambling Commission and, as Mr S revealed last year, his wife Laura Saunders – who was the party’s candidate for Bristol North West and a former CCHQ staffer – was also under investigation for gambling offences and has today been charged by the watchdog.
Among the others facing charges are Russell George, a Welsh Tory party politician for Montgomeryshire who was reselected on Sunday but has now been suspended, and Nick Mason, who was formerly the chief data officer for the Conservative party. The watchdog launched its probe last year and has said the investigation focused on individuals ‘suspected of using confidential information…to gain an unfair advantage in betting markets’. Those charge will appear at Westminster Magistrates Court on 13 June. Stay tuned…
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