The Conservative Party has withdrawn its support for two candidates who are being investigated over betting on the timing of the general election.
The Conservative election campaign has been plunged into crisis as two Tory candidates, two officials, and an officer from Rishi Sunak’s close protection team are being investigated by the Gambling Commission over the placing of bets on the timing of the election.
The prime minister had initially insisted he had to wait until the Gambling Commission’s inquiry had concluded to take any action but had faced pressure to suspend Craig Williams and Laura Saunders, the two Tory candidates.
On Tuesday morning, the Conservative Party announced they were no longer being supported as Tory candidates.
They will still appear on ballot papers as Conservative candidates as it is too late to change them ahead of next Thursday’s vote but they will not allowed to become Conservative MPs, if they win their seats.
A Conservative Party spokesman said: “As a result of ongoing internal enquiries, we have concluded that we can no longer support Craig Williams or Laura Saunders as parliamentary candidates at the forthcoming general election.
“We have checked with the Gambling Commission that this decision does not compromise the investigation that they are conducting, which is rightly independent and ongoing.”
Sky News has contacted Ms Saunders, who was the Tory candidate for Bristol North West, and Mr Williams, the Tory candidate for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr, for a comment.
The two officials under investigation both took a leave of absence last week when their names were revealed. They are Tony Lee, the Tory’s director of campaigns and husband of Ms Saunders, and Nick Mason, the party’s chief data officer – who has denied any wrongdoing.
The other candidates for Bristol North West are:
Caroline Gooch, Lib Dems
Darren Jones, Labour
Scarlett O’Connor, Reform UK
Mary Page, Green Party
Ben Smith, SDP
The other candidates for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr are:
Jeremy Brignell-Thorp, Green Party
Oliver Lewis, Reform Uk
Glyn Preston, Lib Dems
Elwyn Vaughan, Plaid Cymru
Steve Witherden, Labour
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