A Conservative candidate who is facing a probe over allegedly betting on the timing of the General Election “will be co-operating with the Gambling Commission”, according to a solicitor’s statement.
Laura Saunders, who is standing in Bristol North West, is one in a series of people with links to the Tory party or No 10 caught up in claims about gambling on the date of the July 4 contest.
With just two weeks until polling day, Rishi Sunak’s election campaign has been thrown into fresh turmoil over the allegations.
Honoured and excited to have recently been selected as the candidate for Bristol North West #SelectSaunders pic.twitter.com/UIdo8mHzie
— Laura Saunders (@LRSaunders23) October 25, 2023
Ms Saunders’ husband, the Conservatives’ director of campaigning Tony Lee, took a leave of absence amid reports the couple are being looked into by the Gambling Commission.
In a statement released on Ms Saunders’ behalf, Nama Zarroug, a solicitor at Astraea Linskills, said: “As the Conservative Party has already stated, investigations are ongoing.
“Ms Saunders will be co-operating with the Gambling Commission and has nothing further to add.
“It is inappropriate to conduct any investigation of this kind via the media, and doing so risks jeopardising the work of the Gambling Commission and the integrity of its investigation.
“The publication of the BBC’s story is premature and is a clear infringement of Ms Saunders’ privacy rights. She is considering legal action against the BBC and any other publishers who infringe her privacy rights.”
