MINISTER DENIES PM HAS BEEN SLOW TO ACT OVER GAMBLE-GATE

WORK and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride has said that the Prime Minister is “very angry” about the gamble-gate scandal and insisted that he has taken decisive action on the matter.

He told GB News: “It is one of those things that probably needs further debate as a more general point, but there’s no getting away from the fact that it is utterly wrong if people are using any inside information, in this context, gambling on the General Election

“The Prime Minister is very angry about it, very clear about it and we’ve taken very decisive action.”

He continued: “If you’ve got insider information, which is clearly utterly wrong, and that is what the Gambling Commission is looking at at the moment.

“And then you’ve got this broader issue that you’ve raised about, should politicians ever gamble on anything that is political at any point, even if they clearly do not have any more information than is available to the general public?

“That is a wider debate that probably these instances are going to surface. I think that’s an important debate for us to have.

“But as I say, as regards Alister Jack, he has made it very clear that he is not used inside information. He didn’t place the bets during May, which is the period that the enquiry is being is focusing on.”

He added: “These things can take a little bit of time to look at to make sure that we get them right, but internal inquiries have been conducted. The Prime Minister has been very clear as to the consequences.

“If the Gambling Commission finds against individuals, they will be removed promptly from the Conservative Party and in the meantime, those candidates are not supported by the Conservative Party in this General Election.”