The Metropolitan Police have announced that they will not be pursuing any charges of misconduct in public office against politicians and political figures who placed bets on the election date. Their statement says “the cases will be passed back to the Gambling Commission for further investigation.” Guido told you so…
As co-conspirators know, the Section 42 definition of “Cheating” as per the Gambling Act applies when you nobble a horse, bribe a croupier or mark cards – not when you have inside information that your bet is a dead certainty. Whilst the optics and ethical dimension of the bets are not good, it still required interference to be a crime. The scandal was load of bollocks and an effective muddying of the waters for political purposes…
It’s fairly likely that the bets in question might be voided* as often happens. The Lobby journalists who placed their own bets using “insider information” will be breathing a sigh of relief…
*Guido’s after the event bet appears to have been quietly voided if he is not mistaken.
Some weeks ago Rishi was standing in the rain and told Guido the date of the election. Believe it or not you can still bet on the date of the general election, so today Guido put a bet a £1 on the date, or more specifically a £1 bet on when it would not be. It’s apparently a sure thing and according to an hysterical media this is a crime. It isn’t for obvious commonsense reasons. No one has ever been prosecuted in these circumstances.
What is likely to happen after all this hoo ha is that the bets will be voided and all the monies returned. The only people likely to be prosecuted are police officers and even then it is more likely they will be given an official warning / admonishment. If the Labour campaigners working at the Gambling Commission think otherwise they know where to find Guido. This nonsense has been beyond ridiculous and flimsy.
Labour has just suspended their candidate for Central Suffolk & North Ipswich, Kevin Craig, after being told the Gambling Commission has launched an investigation into him. Pushed onto the sword…
UPDATE: Sky News says Craig placed a bet on the outcome of his constituency, not on the date of the election.
UPDATE II: The BBC reports that Craig bet against himself.
The current Head of Public Affairs at the Gambling Commission is George Sinnott, who joined the Birmingham-based regulator after leading Labour’s Sion Simon’s unsuccessful 2017 West Midlands Mayoral campaign. And who was leading Andy Street’s successful West Midlands Mayoral campaign in 2017? Answer: Tony Lee – now former head of Tory campaigning who’s wife put the bet on the date. Weird coincidence?
While this may be a coincidence, it raises questions about whether George used this inside information to seek revenge on his former rival. George has also worked for numerous Labour MPs. Guido called the Gambling Commission to speak to George – they claimed that in the middle of the biggest media storm they have ever been in – that the head of public affairs was off today. They said they would not be commenting on the investigation.
The leaks are coming from someone – George Sinnott worked for the Labour Party in various positions for 15 years before joining the Gambling Commission. He also praised Starmer’s election as Labour leader on social media while he was working there. It is widely believed he is the source of what are frankly ridiculous claims that betting on the date of the election could be a crime if you were in the know. There has never been a conviction in this situation.
UPDATE: Sinnott gets in touch to say “I am clear I have not leaked any information”.
The Tories are having a hysterical meltdown as their Director of Campaigning, Tony Lee, “took a leave of absence from Party HQ yesterday” following the Gambling Commission’s confirmation that it is “investigating” his candidate wife for allegedly taking a punt on the election date. Tony Lee has deleted his LinkedIn account in the meantime. It follows the arrest of a police protection officer yesterday and similar allegations against a Tory MP…
Guido reminds co-conspirators that there is no crime committed here, despite the leaking from inside the Gambling Commission. Section 42 definition of “Cheating” as per the Gambling Act applies when you nobble a horse, bribe a croupier or mark cards – not when you have inside information that your bet is a dead certainty. Whilst the optics and ethical dimension of the bets are not good, it still requires interference to be a crime. Gambling industry experts believe the Commission is being over zealous and the investigations will result in individuals being cleared of committing any crimes. Not before the reputational damage is being done in the election campaign…
The PM’s close protection police officer was arrested “under suspicion of misconduct in public office”. Not a Gambling Act offence.
It’s curious to note that everyone investigated so far is a Tory or works for a Tory. Do Labour MPs not bet on the election date? For the Gambling Commission to act so politically is high risk for a public body, who are supposed to maintain studious neutrality during election purdah. Who will guard the guards themselves?
