As Rishi Sunak comes under increasing pressure to intervene in the Tory general election betting scandal, senior figures are urging him to take action.
The Prime Minister was called on to immediately suspend anyone under investigation from the party and launch a Cabinet Office investigation into the scandal.
Party chairman Richard Holden, who is responsible for overseeing the Conservative Party’s general election campaign, has remained tight-lipped about the crisis.
Click here for our live coverage of the general election campaign
A former Tory minister and deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats are among those joining the growing call for those involved to be suspended.
Labour’s national campaign co-ordinator, Pat McFadden, has written to the Gambling Commission asking the watchdog to release the names of everyone being investigated.
As the deepening crisis threatens to derail the Conservative Party’s election campaign for another week:
-
Sources close to Oliver Dowden have confirmed that the deputy Prime Minister is not betting on the election, putting pressure on other senior figures to exclude themselves.
-
James Cleverly did not deny that a cabinet minister was involved, saying only “not to my knowledge”.
-
Michael Gove compared the situation to Partygate; voters see it as “one rule for them, another rule for us”
-
Labour’s Bridget Phillipson said there was “real disgust” among voters at the allegations
-
The number of Conservatives investigated by the Watchdog has risen to four; two candidates and two officials
-
While Tory figures remain in office, anger grows over the sacking of the police guard who was also charged
Amid mounting negativity, former justice secretary Sir Robert Buckland told LBC he was horrified by the scandal. “Whatever the motivation of these people… is this really what we expect? “I think not,” he said.
When asked if he thought the Prime Minister should remove those involved, he replied: “I do.”
And former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng told GB News: “This is childish and incredibly stupid. “How did they think they wouldn’t get caught?” Pointing the finger at Mr Sunak, he said he was responsible and was “ultimately responsible”.
He continued: “Sometimes it may be unfair, maybe he doesn’t know what’s going on, but your character, your duty as the leader of an organization is to bring some kind of discipline to the organization and if things go well. Wrong – I know this is an old-fashioned view and people don’t really agree with it anymore, but ultimately I think the leader bears the responsibility for what happens.”
Following the Prime Minister’s day of silence, Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: Independent: “Rishi Sunak must personally intervene to order a Cabinet Office investigation and remove anyone investigated by the Gambling Commission.
“People are tired of this crap. Day by day, hour by hour, the Conservative government is sinking deeper into it.”
In his damning letter to the Gambling Commission, Mr McFadden said: “Millions of people will be voting this week as postal ballots have already been sent out. “They deserve to have all the facts about this scandal at hand as they do so.
“I believe it is in the public interest for the Gambling Commission to make public the names of others you are investigating in relation to this matter. Of particular interest will be whether any government ministers bet on the date of the election before it was announced.”
Independent It revealed that an unnamed cabinet minister was believed to be among several people being investigated and that several senior Tories, including Grant Shapps, Penny Mordaunt, James Cleverly, Mark Harper and Mr Gove, had excluded themselves.
Over the weekend, the Conservative Party’s chief data officer Nick Mason became the latest person to be investigated by the Gambling Commission.
He is the fourth figure close to the party leadership to be investigated by the gambling watchdog for allegedly betting on the timing of the election before the date was announced.
Latest allegations published Sunday TimesHe claimed dozens of bets were placed by Mr Mason, with potential winnings worth thousands of pounds.
Mr Gove said: “The perception that we operate outside the rules we set for others was damaging at the time of Partygate and is damaging here.
“If you are in a privileged position, [close] According to the Prime Minister, you are at the center of a political operation and you are using insider information to earn additional money for yourself, which is completely unacceptable. So, if these allegations are true, it is very difficult to defend them.”
Home Secretary Mr Cleverly said he would not defend the Conservative Party who were found to be betting, but said it was the subject of an investigation by the Gambling Commission.
He said: “My understanding is that a small number of people were involved in this incident” and added: “There is an investigation being carried out by the Gambling Commission and we have been told very, very clearly that we should not discuss investigations.”
Various reports suggested the commission was investigating “many more” people and expanded its investigation to include possible bets made by families and friends of people linked to the party.
An industry source told Independent He said the Gambling Commission had asked for details of all bets made after May 1 on elections in July and was now “sifting through the data and separating people from that”.
The revelations are a fresh blow to Rishi Sunak’s hopes of getting the Tory election campaign back on track after three other Tory figures were also implicated in the scandal.
Craig Williams, Mr Sunak’s parliamentary private secretary in Montgomeryshire, was the first Tory candidate publicly linked to the betting scandal.
An investigation has been launched into Laura Saunders, who has worked for the Conservatives in Bristol North West since 2015, and her campaign director husband Tony Lee.
Ms Phillipson, the shadow education secretary, said there was a “real disgust” among voters about general election betting.
He told the BBC Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “People will bet all over the country, but I think there’s a real disgust among many voters and what we’re seeing here is quite shocking behaviour.
“Rishi Sunak promised us his government would be different; “He has not taken action against the candidates concerned, he must remove them and – as Michael Gove has said – it reminds people of the Tories’ worst excesses in the last 14 years.”