Betting scandal: Met police to take bigger role

METROPOLITAN POLICE said on Thursday (27) it was investigating "a small number of bets" made on the timing of next week's national election, with at least seven of its own police officers identified as having placed such wagers.

"We have agreed a joint approach with the Gambling Commission, who are the appropriate authority to investigate the majority of these allegations," detective superintendent Katherine Goodwin said in the statement.

"There will, however, be a small number of cases where a broader criminal investigation by the police is required."

As well as breaching gambling regulations, these cases could involve additional offences such as Misconduct in a Public Office, the Met said.

According to reports, the Met will investigate serious criminal matters, such as misconduct in public office, while the commission will handle most cases involving breaches of the Gambling Act.

The Met said it had compared the names of those who placed bets on the timing of the election against a list of their officers and so far, seven had been identified.

One, a member of the special protection unit who media have reported was one of prime minister Rishi Sunak's bodyguards, has been arrested.

Earlier this week both Sunak's Tories and the opposition Labour party withdrew support for candidates who are being investigated over bets relating to the July 4 election.

Two senior Tory officials are also being investigated.

"We are focused on an investigation into confidential information being used to gain an unfair advantage when betting on the date of the General Election," Andrew Rhodes, chief executive of the Gambling Commission, said.

"Our enforcement team has made rapid progress so far and will continue to work closely with the Metropolitan Police to draw this case to a just conclusion."

The Guardian revealed the scandal two weeks ago, identifying Craig Williams as a subject of investigation for betting on the election date. The watchdog is also examining bets allegedly placed by Tony Lee, Tory campaigns director, his wife Laura Saunders, a Tory candidate, and Nick Mason, the Tories’ chief data officer.

Sunak dropped Williams and Saunders in an effort to move past the scandal affecting his campaign.

There were reports that Russell George, a Tory member of the Welsh parliament, is part of the commission’s inquiry.

Labour was drawn into the scandal on Tuesday (25), suspending Central Suffolk and North Ipswich candidate Kevin Craig after an investigation was launched. Craig confirmed he was under investigation for betting against his own victory.

Labour stated it would return £100,000 Craig donated, and Wes Streeting would return £13,000 donated for staffing costs.

The Sun reported that Tory candidate Philip Davies also bet against himself, placing £8,000 on losing his seat.

(with inputs from Reuters)