Senior members of Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s Conservative Party are being investigated by Britain’s gambling regulator for allegedly betting on the date of a general election before it was announced, the Sunday Times reported.
The UK Gambling Commission has already reportedly been investigating two Conservative candidates and the party’s campaign manager over betting on the date of the July 4 general election.
The widening scandal is a further blow to Mr Sunak’s efforts to catch up with the opposition Labour Party, which has a large lead in pre-election opinion polls.
The paper named the official as Nick Mason, the Conservative party’s chief data officer. Mr Mason did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The paper said a spokesman for Mr Mason denied any wrongdoing.
The Sunday Times, citing a Conservative party statement, said Mason had taken leave, but the party did not confirm the claim when contacted by Reuters.
“As per instructions from the Gambling Commission we are not permitted to discuss any matters relating to the investigation with the subject or any other person,” a Conservative spokesman said.
The Gambling Commission has not revealed the names of those under investigation, and in response to a request for comment on the Sunday Times report, a spokesman for the Commission said it would not disclose details of its investigations, including the identities of those under investigation.
Mr Sunak said on Thursday he was “incredibly angry” to hear about the allegations made against his party colleagues and said it was a “really serious issue”.
One of the Conservative candidates named in the scandal, Craig Williams, has already apologised for his poor judgment, the party’s campaign manager Tony Lee has been placed on administrative leave and a police officer from the Special Constabulary unit has also been arrested on suspicion of betting on election day.
