A Conservative politician in the Welsh Parliament is being investigated over a bet on the general election. Russell George is the fifth Conservative to face inquiries by the Gambling Commission. It comes on the same day the Conservatives withdrew their support for two general election candidates, including Mr George's colleague Craig Williams, who is standing in the newly-named constituency of Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr.
Mr George, whose seat is Montgomeryshire, said he will co-operate fully with the commission, and has "stepped back" from the Senedd's Conservative shadow cabinet. Labour called for Mr George to be suspended from the Conservative group in the Senedd. Mr Williams was the first Tory to admit he had placed a bet on the timing of the election and who was a parliamentary aide to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
The BBC's political editor Chris Mason reported that Mr George’s bet, placed online for a July election, was placed more than a week before the election was called and neither man was aware of the other’s bet. It is not known how much Mr George bet or what the odds were. Earlier on Tuesday Mr George had called on voters to back his colleague Mr Williams despite the decision by the Conservatives to withdraw party support.
He said at the time: "It may seem old fashioned, but I believe in innocent until proven guilty." Mr George is a Member of the Senedd (MS) for Montgomeryshire, which was the constituency represented by Mr Williams before the dissolution of th.
