Craig Williams

Ex-Tory MP among 15 charged with placing bets on timing of General Election

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/ex-tory-mp-among-15-charged-placing-bets-timing-general-election

A sign for a polling station at Magdalen Hill Cemetery near Winchester, Hampshire, July 4, 2024

FORMER Tory MP Craig Williams was among 15 people charged today in connection to bets placed on the timing of the general election last May.

Russell George, the Tory Senedd member for Montgomeryshire, and Nick Mason, a former chief data officer for the party, are also facing charges.

Welsh Conservatives leader Darren Millar said he had suspended Mr George from the Welsh Conservative Group in the Senedd.

“The suspension is a neutral act pending the outcome of the justice process,” he said.

The Gambling Commission began its investigation in June, focusing on “individuals suspected of using confidential information — specifically advance knowledge of the proposed election date — to gain an unfair advantage in betting markets.”

Laura Saunders, a Tory candidate for Bristol North West, and former Conservative party chief marketing officer Simon Chatfield, were also among those charged with offences under the Gambling Act 2005.

They are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates Court on June 13.

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Continue ReadingEx-Tory MP among 15 charged with placing bets on timing of General Election

Tories rocked by sleaze as campaign director leaves over gambling scandal

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/tories-rocked-by-sleaze-as-campaign-director-leaves-over-gambling-scandal

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during a visit to Cambridge Rugby Club in Cambridge, while on the General Election campaign trail, June 17, 2024

COLLAPSING Conservatives lost their campaign director today as the party was rocked by a fresh row over insider betting on the election date.

Tony Lee was forced to take leave of absence from the campaign as the suspension of his wife, Tory candidate Laura Saunders, was called for by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.

The Gambling Commission is reported to be looking into bets placed on the timing of the election. Another Tory candidate who worked in Downing Street, Craig Williams, has already apologised for wagering on a July election in the days before PM Rishi Sunak called the snap poll.

Ms Saunders is the Conservative standard-bearer in Bristol North-West and previously worked at Tory headquarters.

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/tories-rocked-by-sleaze-as-campaign-director-leaves-over-gambling-scandal

Continue ReadingTories rocked by sleaze as campaign director leaves over gambling scandal