UK election betting scandal deepens as Labour suspends candidate

The UK election betting scandal spread to the Labour party on Tuesday, as a Tory cabinet minister also admitted he had placed wagers on the date of polling day.

Labour suspended Kevin Craig, its candidate for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, after he wagered he would lose his bid to become an MP and became the subject of a probe into election betting by the Gambling Commission.

Meanwhile, Alister Jack, the Scottish secretary, admitted placing three bets between March and April on the date of the election — one of which was successful — but said he was not being investigated by the gambling regulator.

Russell George, a Conservative member of the Welsh assembly, also became the fifth Tory to be probed by the commission for allegedly placing bets on the timing of the general election.

Craig bet he would lose at the July 4 election, according to a Labour official briefed on the matter.

On current polling, the constituency of Central Suffolk and North Ipswich is a toss-up between Labour and the Conservatives.

A Labour spokesperson confirmed the Gambling Commission had launched an investigation into Craig.

Labour said that, after the “receipt of communication” from the Gambling Commission, it had acted to suspend Craig, adding: “The Labour party upholds the highest standards for our parliamentary candidates, as the public rightly expects from any party hoping to serve, which is why we have acted immediately in this case.”

The party is also set to return a £100,000 donation it took from Craig last year, according to officials.

The suspension drags Labour into a scandal that had hitherto engulfed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservative party and the police.

Craig said: “A few weeks ago, when I thought I would never win this seat, I put a bet on the Tories to win here with the intention of giving any winnings to local charities.

“While I did not place this bet with any prior knowledge of the outcome, this was a huge mistake, for which I apologise unreservedly.” He added he would comply with the commission’s investigation.

Craig is founder and chief executive of PLMR, a Westminster lobbying firm. His selection to be the candidate to represent Labour in Central Suffolk and North Ipswich was controversial because he was on a shortlist of one.

Jack said he had placed two bets in March for an election to be held in May and June respectively, and then another in April on polling day being sometime between July and September.

“I have not breached any gambling rules . . . I had no knowledge of the date of the election until the date it was called,” he said in a statement to the Financial Times.

Earlier the BBC reported that, shortly after Sunak announced the election, Jack had told the broadcaster he had made £2,100 after betting on June and July election dates.

The BBC said Jack last week stated his previous comments had been “a joke” and “I was pulling your leg”.

Meanwhile, Andrew RT Davies, leader of the Welsh Conservatives, said George had been contacted by the commission regarding “bets on the timing of the general election”.

“Russell George has stepped back from the Welsh Conservative shadow cabinet while these investigations are ongoing,” he added. George could not be immediately reached for comment.

Sunak on Tuesday withdrew support from two Conservative candidates who have allegedly been involved with betting on the timing of the election.

The prime minister had previously backed Craig Williams and Laura Saunders for several days.

Saunders, a Tory staffer, is standing in Bristol North West while Williams, a former parliamentary aide to Sunak, is a candidate in Montgomeryshire.

With nominations having closed, Williams and Saunders, like Craig, will appear on ballot papers for their parties but no longer enjoy official endorsement.

In a statement, Williams said he had committed “an error of judgment, not an offence” in placing a bet, adding: “I intend to clear my name.”

The other Tories being investigated by the commission are Tony Lee, Conservative campaign director and Saunders’ husband, and Nick Mason, the party’s chief data officer.

Sunak has said he is “extremely angry” about the scandal, but until now had wanted to allow official investigations into the possible use in election betting of privileged information to run their course before taking any disciplinary action.

Asked why Sunak had changed his mind, one Tory official said simply: “Further inquiries.”

London’s Metropolitan Police announced five more officers were under investigation by the commission for allegedly placing bets on the timing of the election, in the wake of the arrest last week of one of Sunak’s bodyguards.

The commission has widened its probe to look at hundreds of bets placed in the days before Sunak called the election and is sifting through wagers — for which individuals stood to gain more than £199 — to identify potential links to politicians.