The election betting scandal has deepened as a Welsh Conservative is being investigated and a cabinet minister revealed he placed bets on the general election date.
Russell George, a Welsh Conservative member of the Senedd, stepped back from the shadow cabinet after it emerged he was facing a probe by the Gambling Commission over alleged betting on the timing of the vote.
He said he would “cooperate fully” with the investigation, and Welsh Tory leader Andrew RT Davies said all other members of the Welsh Conservative Group had “confirmed that they have not placed any bets”.
Mr George is the third Conservative candidate to be named as part of the commission’s investigation, while two Tory officials, Rishi Sunak’s close protection officer and five other officers are also under investigation.
Scotland Secretary Alister Jack said he put three wagers on the timing of the poll but denied breaking any rules and said he is not under investigation.
Up to 15 Conservative candidates and officials are being investigated by the Gambling Commission, according to BBC Newsnight.
The growing scope of the scandal has led to questions over whether politicians should be banned from betting on politics, as footballers are on football.
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Tories launch own probe into betting scandal
Mr Jack said in April he had put £20 at odds of 5/1 on an election being held between July and September but had no knowledge of when it would be called until the day Mr Sunak announced it on 22 May.
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He said he placed two unsuccessful £5 bets in March for a vote to be held in May and June.
Image: Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said he bet on the election but way before it was announced. Pic: PA
“I am very clear that I have never, on any occasion, broken any Gambling Commission rules,” he said.
“Specifically, I did not place any bets on the date of the general election during May [the period under investigation by the Gambling Commission].
“Furthermore, I am not aware of any family or friends placing bets.
“I want to be absolutely clear I have not breached any gambling rules. I placed two unsuccessful bets on the date of the general election and one successful one.”
What is the law around gambling?
There are stricts rules around gambling, with the latest laws updated in 2005.
Section 42 of the Gambling Act 2005 deals with cheating and says a person commits an offence if they cheat at gambling or do “anything for the purpose of enabling or assisting another person to cheat at gambling”.
It adds: “It is immaterial whether a person who cheats improves his changes of winning anything, or wins anything.”
Cheating is defined as an “actual or attempted deception or interference in connection with the process by which gambling is conducted, or a real or virtual game, race or other event or process to which gambling relates”.
Someone found guilty of cheating at gambling can be imprisoned for a maximum of two years and/or fined, or be jailed for six months for a lesser offence.
Betting with insider knowledge is also not allowed as an MP, with the MPs’ code of conduct prohibiting members from “causing significant damage to the reputation and integrity of the House”.
On Tuesday, Labour got involved in the scandal for the first time after the Labour candidate for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, Kevin Craig, was suspended from the party after betting on a Conservative winning the seat.
It is understood Labour will return £100,000 in donations he has made to the party since Sir Keir Starmer took charge.
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Tuesday also saw five more police officers being added to the Gambling Commission’s investigation after the Met Police passed their names over.
Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride told Sky News: “There is a broader issue here and a broader debate to be had about gambling around politics and politicians’ involvement in that and to try and establish where the line should be drawn.
“And it may be going forward that everybody concludes that it shouldn’t happen at all.
“It may be that it should happen, but just on a certain basis and so on and so forth. But I think that is a debate, longer-term, that we need to be having.”
Image: Craig Williams and Laura Saunders. Pics: PA/Laura Saunders for Bristol North West
Mr Sunak has withdrawn backing for the first two Tory candidates to be investigated after coming under pressure to take a tougher approach on the alleged use of inside information to bet on the timing of the election.
Laura Saunders and Craig Williams will appear as Conservative candidates on ballot papers as it is too late to remove them, but will have to stand as independents.
Two officials under investigation both took a leave of absence last week when their names were revealed. They are Tony Lee, the Tory’s director of campaigns and husband of Ms Saunders, and Nick Mason, the party’s chief data officer – who has denied any wrongdoing.
A full list of the candidates running for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich is below:
Charlie Caiger, independent Tony Gould, Reform UK Mike Hallatt, independent Brett Mickelburgh, Lib Dems Dan Pratt, Greens Patrick Spencer, Conservatives
One year on, how’s Keir Starmer’s government going? We’ve put together an end-of-term report with the help of pollster YouGov.
First, here are the government’s approval ratings – drifting downwards.
It didn’t start particularly high. There has never been a honeymoon.
But here is the big change. Last year’s Labour voters now disapprove of their own government. That wasn’t true at the start – but is now.
And remember, it’s easier to keep your existing voter coalition together than to get new ones from elsewhere.
So we have looked at where voters who backed Labour last year have gone now.
YouGov’s last mega poll shows half of Labour voters last year – 51% – say they would vote for them again if an election was held tomorrow.
Around one in five (19%) say they don’t know who they’d vote for – or wouldn’t vote.
But Labour are also leaking votes to the Lib Dems, Greens and Reform.
These are the main reasons why.
A sense that Labour haven’t delivered on their promises is top – just above the cost of living. Some 22% say they’ve been too right-wing, with a similar number saying Labour have “made no difference”. Immigration and public services are also up there.
Now, YouGov asked people whether they think the cabinet is doing a good or a bad job, and combined the two figures together to get a net score.
Here’s one scenario – 2024 Labour voters say they would much prefer a Labour-led government over a Conservative one.
But what about a Reform UK-led government? Well, Labour polls even better against them – just 11% of people who voted Labour in 2024 want to see them enter Number 10.
Signs of hope for Keir Starmer. But as Labour MPs head off for their summer holidays, few of their voters would give this government an A*.
Sir Keir Starmer’s plan to recognise Palestine as a state has been attacked as “appeasement towards jihadist terrorists” by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The prime minister said the UK will recognise a Palestinian state by September unless Israel takes “substantive steps” to end the situation in Gaza, Israel agrees to a ceasefire, commits to a long-term sustainable peace, allows the UN to restart aid supplies and does not annexe the West Bank.
About 250 MPs from all parties – half of them Labour – had signed a letter last week calling for Sir Keir to immediately recognise a Palestinian state.
Sir Keir said that by giving Israel a deadline of 9 September UN meeting, he hoped this would play a part “in changing the conditions on the ground, and making sure aid gets into making sure that there is hope of a two-state solution for the future”.
But Mr Netanyahu condemned the plan, saying Sir Keir “rewards Hamas’s monstrous terrorism and punishes its victims”.
“A jihadist state on Israel’s border today will threaten Britain tomorrow,” he wrote on X.
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“Appeasement towards jihadist terrorists always fails. It will fail you too. It will not happen.”
The Israelis also accused Sir Keir of pandering to his MPs and France, after Emmanuel Macron committed to recognising a Palestinian state last week, and harming efforts to release Israeli hostages.
Image: Benjamin Netanyahu was effusive in his condemnation
Lib Dems and Greens: ‘Bargaining chip’
Sir Keir also faced accusations of using Palestinian state recognition as a “bargaining chip” by both the Lib Dems and the Green Party.
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey said a Palestinian state should have been recognised “months ago” and “far greater action” is needed to stop the humanitarian disaster in Gaza.
Image: Jordanian military personnel prepare planes to deliver airdrops in Gaza on Monday
Green Party foreign affairs spokesperson Ellie Chowns, who wants immediate state recognition, said it was a “cynical political gesture”.
Humza Yousaf, Scotland’s former SNP first minister, who revealed a family member was killed in Gaza days ago, told Sky News statehood “shouldn’t be dependent” upon the conditions Sir Keir has set for Israel, but is the “inalienable right” of the Palestinian people.
The British Palestinian Committee, representing Palestinian interests in the UK, described conditions as “absurd and performative”.
Image: Palestinians wait to receive food from a charity kitchen, amid a hunger crisis in Gaza City. Pic: Reuters
UK Jewish groups seek clarity
The Board of Deputies of British Jews, the UK’s largest Jewish organisation, said it was “seeking urgent clarification” that the UK will not recognise Palestine as a state if Israeli hostages remain in Hamas captivity, or if Hamas keeps rejecting a ceasefire deal.
The Labour Friends of Israel group said it has “shared goals” with the government but state recognition “will be a merely symbolic act unless the UK uses its influence to establish the principles of a meaningful pathway to a Palestinian state”.
Sarah Champion, Labour MP and chair of the international development committee, who started the MP letter calling for state recognition, said she was “delighted and relieved”.
However, she added: “I’m troubled our recognition appears conditional on Israel’s actions.”
When Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced the plan at a UN meeting, he received applause.
Not many other Labour MPs commented.
Tories accuse Starmer of appeasing MPs
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accused Sir Keir of being more focused on a “political problem for the Labour Party” than other issues facing the UK.
“Recognising a Palestinian state won’t bring the hostages home, won’t end the war and won’t get aid into Gaza,” she posted on X.
“This is political posturing at its very worst.”
Tory shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel said the announcement was “to appease his backbenchers” as “he knows that promises to recognise Palestine will not secure lasting peace”.
Image: Aid trucks were allowed into Gaza on Tuesday. Pic: Reuters
Trump did not discuss statehood with Starmer
Donald Trump said he and Sir Keir “never did discuss” the PM’s plan to recognise a Palestinian state during their meetings in Scotland the day before.
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Trump responds to Sky question on Israel
However, Tammy Bruce, spokeswoman for the US state department, said Sir Keir’s plan is a “slap in the face for the victims of October 7”, which “rewards Hamas”, the Telegraph reported.
Gary Neville has criticised the government’s national insurance (NI) rise this year, saying it could deter companies from employing people and “probably could have been held back”.
The former Manchester United and England footballer-turned business owner, who vocally supported Labour at the last election, employs hundreds of people.
But he expressed his frustration at the recent hike on employers’ NI, which has significantly increased the taxes businesses have to pay for their employees.
Speaking to Sky News’ Business Live, Neville said: “I honestly don’t believe that, to be fair, companies and small businesses should be deterred from employing people. So, I think the national insurance rise was one that I feel probably could have been held back, particularly in terms of the way in which the economy was.”
While the Sky Sports pundit thought the minimum wage increase introduced at the same time was necessary to ensure that people are paid a fair wage and looked after, he made it clear the double whammy for businesses at the start of April would be a challenge for many companies big and small.
“I mean look it’s been a tough economy now for a good few years and I did think that once there was a change of government, and once there was some stability, that we would get something settling,” he said. “But it’s not settling locally in our country, but it is not settling actually, to be fair, in many places in the world either.
“I don’t think we can ever criticise the government for increasing the minimum wage. I honestly believe that people, to be fair, should be paid more so I don’t think that’s something that you can be critical of. I do think that the national insurance rise, though, was a challenge.”
Neville’s business interests are diverse, spanning property development, hospitality, media, and sports.
He co-founded GG Hospitality, which owns Hotel Football and the Stock Exchange Hotel, and is involved in Relentless Developments, focusing on building projects in the North West. He is also a co-founder of Buzz 16, a production company, and a partner in The Consello Group, a financial services company.
The tax increase is expected to raise £25bn for the Treasury, with employers having to pay NI at 15% on salaries above £5,000, and up to 13.8% on salaries above £9,100.
The rise has already led the Bank of England to warn that it is contributing to a job market slowdown.
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NI and tariffs pile pressure on firms
Governor Andrew Bailey warned last month that “the labour market has been very tight in the past few years, but we are now seeing signs that conditions are easing, employment growth is subdued, and several indicators of labour demand and hiring intentions have softened”.
The government has defended the tax increase, announced by Rachel Reeves in last year’s budget and implemented in April, arguing that the money was needed to pay for public services like the NHS to help bring down waiting lists.
‘Can’t get any worse’ for Man Utd
Neville conceded that turning beleaguered football club Manchester United around could prove more difficult than trying to bring about substantial economic growth.
The side finished 15th last season – its worst performance in the history of the Premier League.
“Yeah, that could be a bigger challenge than the economy… I think the two signings are good signings yet, there’s a couple more needed,” Neville said of his former club’s fortunes.
“I think they need a goalkeeper. And I think if they fill those two positions with decent signings, then United can have a lot, I mean, they have to have a better season than last year. It can’t get any worse, really.”