- author, Joe Pike
- role, Political reporter
-
Conservative candidate Craig Williams apologised and said he had made a “major error of judgement” by betting on the date of the next general election.
Mr Williams was an aide to the Chancellor in the previous Parliament and is alleged to have bet £100 on the July election, three days before Rishi Sunak announced it for 4 July.
Sunak’s decision to call a general election came as a surprise to many, including many Conservative MPs who had expected it to be held in the autumn.
“I clearly made a huge error of judgement, that’s for sure, and I apologise,” Williams told the BBC.
The Labour Party called the allegations “utterly extraordinary.”
Williams declined to answer questions about whether he had inside information when he placed the bet.
“This is an independent process so I’m not going to elaborate on what I said,” he said.
“The Gambling Commission is currently investigating.”
The former MP, who is standing for the Conservative constituency of Glyndwr in Montgomeryshire, has been criticised by Lord Cameron, who said it was “clearly a very foolish decision”.
Earlier, the Foreign Secretary told BBC Breakfast: “He has clearly made a very foolish decision and is being investigated by the Gambling Commission, who have considerable powers as to what the outcome will be.”
He said Mr Williams was already standing as a candidate under the Conservative party banner and so could not be changed, adding that Mr Williams “will have to face the consequences of that investigation”.
Williams posted about the allegations on X on Wednesday: “I was contacted by a journalist about a Gambling Commission investigation into one of my accounts and thought it best to be fully transparent.”
“I placed a bet on the general election a few weeks ago which has resulted in some rolling investigations, in which I promise to cooperate fully.”
“I didn’t want to distract from the campaign. I should have thought carefully about how it would look.”
Conservative Wales secretary Faye Jones confirmed the Gambling Commission had “spoken to” Mr Williams and was “carrying out preliminary inquiries”.
She told BBC Wales Live: “It’s not good and there’s no other way around it. Let’s get the facts first before we make any decisions.”
Political opponents reacted strongly, with Welsh Labour’s Stephen Kinnock describing the situation as “utterly extraordinary”.
He added: “It is really important that the Gambling Commission acts swiftly and gives clear judgement on Mr Williams’s conduct.”
Liz Saville-Roberts, Westminster leader of Plaid Cymru, told the programme: “It raises questions about what Mr Williams’ judgement was in setting the date for what is presumed to be a general election.”
A Gambling Commission spokesman said: “We do not confirm or deny whether an investigation is ongoing unless and until that investigation has been concluded or arrests or charges have been made in a criminal investigation.”
The spokesman also said that secretly using information to gain an unfair advantage when gambling “may constitute a fraudulent act in breach of Article 42 of the Gambling Act and is a criminal offence.”
- Jeremy Brignell Thorpe, Green Party
- Oliver Lewis, Reform UK
- Glyn Preston, Liberal Democrat
- Elwyn Vaughan, Pride Camry
- Steve Witherden, Labour Party
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