General election – latest: Senior Tory defends Alister Jack as minister caught in betting scandal

Cabinet Office minister Mel Stride said he did not know how many Conservatives would end up being drawn into the Gambling Commission’s investigation into the possible misuse of inside information on election day.

The BBC reported that 15 Conservative candidates or officials were being considered by the watchdog.

Mr Stride told LBC radio: “I don’t know what the figure is, what it might or might not lead to, or even what parties might be involved, because obviously we’ve just heard that a Labor candidate has apparently bet against himself in the constituency in which he is running and was consequently suspended.

“So I don’t know where this will all lead, there might be more in different political parties in the future.

“But what I do know is that in the case of the Conservative candidates, who are under investigation by the Gambling Commission, they have been suspended. They are not supported as conservative candidates in this election.

“Indeed, the Prime Minister has been very clear: if they are found to have broken the Gambling Commission rules, they will be expelled from the Conservative Party.”

The Westminster gambling row has deepened after a minister revealed he had placed bets on the date of the general election, as the number of politicians involved rose to seven.

Scottish Secretary of State Alister Jack denied breaking the rules but said he had bet three times on the timing of the July 4 poll, becoming the latest of seven politicians and officials to be drawn in in the controversy.

Labor was also drawn into the row on Tuesday, with the party suspending its candidate Kevin Craig after it emerged he had bet he would lose to the Conservatives in the race for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich.

Mr Jack said that in April he had put £20 at odds of 5-1 on an election being held between July and September, but that he did not know when it would be called until Rishi Sunak fired the starting gun on May 22.

Four men have been arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass at Rishi Sunak’s constituency home, as video appears to show an intruder leading a dirty protest at a lake near the property.

The men were arrested at around 12.40pm on Tuesday before being escorted from the Prime Minister’s property in Kirby Sigston, North Yorkshire Police said.

The force added that the men included a 52-year-old from London, a 43-year-old from Bolton, a 21-year-old from Manchester and a 20-year-old from Chichester.

Rishi Sunak has backed Kemi Badenoch in the row with David Tennant, after the actor said he wanted the Tory minister to “shut up”.

The Prime Minister posted on X: “Freedom of expression is the most powerful feature of our democracy. If you ask women to shut up and wish they didn’t exist, you’re the problem.”

Labor appears to be heading for a “massive majority”, Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride has said.

The senior Conservative, a close ally of Rishi Sunak, told Sky News: “I’m extremely worried about the future if we have a Labor government, particularly if we have one that is totally unbridled because it has a massive majority, which is what’s happening. which we seem to be heading towards, with very little opposition in Parliament.

“I would just say to people on this point that I think it’s really important that we think very carefully about the need to hold Labor to account, if they are to win the next general election, and for people to vote for the Conservatives so that we have a decent opposition at least to an outsized Labor Party.

Dawn Butler has spoken out about the row between David Tennant and Kemi Banedoch after the actor suggested the Equalities Minister should “shut up”.

Ms Badenoch wrote in an online post yesterday: “I will not be silent. I will not be silenced by men who prioritize Stonewall applause over the safety of women and girls.

“A rich, left-wing, white male celebrity so blinded by ideology that he sees no point in attacking the only black woman in government by publicly calling for the end of my existence.”

Commenting on Ms Badenoch’s response, Ms Butler, Labor candidate for Brent East, wrote: “Not all black women think the same. I agree with David Tennant. That’s it, that’s the tweet.

The Work and Pensions Secretary was asked why so few of his cabinet colleagues are returning to morning media rounds, Archie Mitchell reports.

The government sends out a minister every day to answer questions from broadcasters, with Mel Stride having raked in more than his fair share since the general election kicked off.

Asked by Sky News why he had appeared nine times since early May while his colleagues were not seen at all, Mr Stride said it was probably because so much of the election campaign was focused on tax.

“We’re not even talking about the highest offices of state and the Prime Minister, but we haven’t really seen the entire cabinet during this campaign beating its chest to say that we are proud of the work that we accomplished… are you surprised? how many times have you been sent out? » Mr. Stride was asked.

Addressing the fiscal aspect of the election, he said: “It’s an area where I have particular interest and expertise and often when we’re not talking about betting and things that suddenly come up from the right from the stage, we are talking about exactly these issues.”

Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride has defended his Cabinet colleague Alister Jack, who said he bet three times on the timing of the July 4 poll.

Mr Stride told Times Radio: “The important thing with Alister, I think, is the fact that… the bet(s) or whatever he may have placed did not happen in May.

“He is very clear that he has not broken any of the rules and is indeed not under any investigation by the Gambling Commission.”