British minister admits to betting on the date of the election
According to Webangah News quoted by Tasnim News agency agency, citing the German publication “D Site”, on According to media reports, “Alistair Jack”, the minister for Scotland in the UK government, has announced that he is betting on the date of the next general election. Jack said he bet £20 (about €24) in April that the next election would be held between July and September 2024. On May 22, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak surprisingly named July 4 as the date for the general election.
Two other bets in March were unsuccessful, Jack’s statement said. But this minister claims that he has not broken any law with his bets. The responsible supervisory authority (gambling commission) does not investigate him. Jack said he didn’t bet again in May. The BBC previously reported that Jack had admitted to the presenter that he had won £2,000 betting on the date of the election. However, Jack said it was just a joke.
Jack is the first government member to be caught up in a growing Tory betting scandal. The Gambling Commission is currently investigating Conservative candidate Craig Williams, who previously worked as principal private secretary in an aide to Sunak. Conservative campaign chief Tony Lee was also on leave as his wife Laura Sanders is said to have placed a bet. Sunak has been appointed and it is said that they have bet on the election date. At the beginning of the week, a Conservative MP in the regional parliament of Wales also resigned from his position in the parliamentary group because he was under investigation. According to media reports, a Labor candidate also made a bet. will not be selected. The party suspended him. In the election campaign, the Labor Party is currently ahead of the ruling Conservative Party.
In England, a new election was revealed long ago, but no specific date was given for it. There was long speculation that the election would be held in the fall, until Sunak surprisingly announced in May that the general election would be held on July 4. The UK Gambling Commission is now investigating whether there was illegal betting on the date of the election. Insider betting is a criminal offense in Britain.
These incidents are reminiscent of the Partygate scandal, which involved illegal quarantine parties at the government headquarters at 10 Downing Street during the coronavirus pandemic. A number of members of the government and their staff were fined for breaking coronavirus laws during the scandal, including then-prime minister Boris Johnson and then-treasury minister Rishi Sunak.
There is growing concern that A few more cases in the betting scandal may be revealed and whether ministers themselves may have been ‘playing a bit’ has created a dire situation among the Tories ahead of the next election.
© | Webangah News Hub has translated this news from the source of Tasnim News Agency |