Two more admit General Election betting offences

Two more people have admitted cheating offences under the Gambling Act 2005 over bets on the date of the 2024 General Election, the Gambling Commission announced on 10 September.

Anthony Lee, who was the Conservative Party’s Director of Campaigning, pleaded guilty to two offences of cheating. The Commission said he was party to confidential discussions about when the election would be held, used that information to place bets and passed it to his wife. Laura Lee, formerly Saunders, who was the party’s Head of International and its candidate for Bristol North-West, pleaded guilty to one offence of cheating.

The election date of 4 July 2024 was announced by then Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on 22 May 2024. Before that, several operators offered special markets on when the election would be called.

Anthony Lee, Laura Lee and Amy Hind are due to be sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on 23 October 2026. Craig Williams pleaded guilty on 29 June and will be sentenced later. The Commission says the trials of 10 defendants are scheduled for September 2027 and January 2028.