London, June 22: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has admitted to being “incredibly angry” on learning about the allegations against some fellow Conservative Party colleagues betting on the date of the general election, scheduled for July 4, and on Friday vowed to “boot out” any party workers found guilty of breaking rules around betting.The embattled British Indian leader, who is trailing in all pre-election opinion polls in the lead up to what has been dubbed as a “punishment election” for the Tories, was pressed on the issue of a number of Tory candidates being investigated by the Gambling Commission for any breach of betting rules associated with insider knowledge. The allegations first emerged last week and have since intensified as Sunak’s close protection officer was arrested by the Metropolitan Police on suspicion of misconduct over placing an election bet.
“What I will say is that if anyone is found to have broken the rules, they should face the full consequences of the law,” Sunak told reporters, in response to questions over the issue dominating the headlines for the governing party.
“There are multiple investigations happening. It’s right they’re allowed to proceed. They’re independent and necessarily confidential. There’s also a criminal investigation and these are potentially criminal matters. If anyone is found to have broken the rules, they should not only face the full consequences of the law, but I will make sure they are booted out of the Conservative Party,” he said.
While betting is legal in the UK, any bets placed with the advantage of insider information could fall within the purview of illegality. The issue was raised during a televised election special on BBC’s ‘Question Time’ on Thursday night, with Sunak replying: “I was incredibly angry to learn of these allegations. It is a really serious matter.