Tory scandal: the wonderful world of political betting

[Retro]

In the wake of the tory election gambling scandal, The Guardian has written this interesting explainer article on political betting.

Note: it remains a mug's game to bet on anything. The only way to guarantee a win is insider knowledge where that's possible to know, which is illegal.

The furore around a flurry of bets placed on the date of the general election, before Rishi Sunak announced it, has shone a rare spotlight on a niche area of the gambling world. The scandal began with revelations in the Guardian about a wager placed by one of Sunak’s political aides, Craig Williams.

Three other people close to the prime minister are are being looked into by the Gambling Commission, in what has become a snowballing crisis for the Tories. But how does political betting work, how popular is it and how can inside information allegedly be used to beat the bookies?

UK election betting scandal: all you need to know about the world of political wagers

The controversy over bets placed on the election date has thrown a light on a little known sector of the gambling industry

www.theguardian.com

 

[Retro]

There you have it: a tory candidate officially calls the tories "a shower of shit". He's so right.

James Cracknell, who is standing to be a Conservative MP, has called the Tories a “shower of shit”, in a video he posted on Facebook.

The former Olympic rower, who is the Conservative candidate for the key Labour target of Colchester, said: “Two weeks out from the Olympics, if we are competing against the Conservative party my teammates and I would be saying they are a shower of shit.

“And if one of my teammates got caught for cheating they’d be dead to me. That abuse of trust is unforgivable.”

His comments emerged over the weekend as more allegations surfaced that Tory candidates and officials bet on the date of the general election before Rishi Sunak announced it.

Check out the embedded video to hear him say it directly.

Tories are a ‘shower of shit’, says Conservative candidate James Cracknell

Former Olympian standing in Colchester adds: ‘If one of my teammates got caught for cheating they’d be dead to me’

www.theguardian.com

 

[live627]

As if insider trading by elected officials wasn't bad enough.