Conservatives' campaign chief admits cheating at gambling by betting on date of 2024 General Election and passing details to his wife so she could have a flutter too

See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Published: 06:38 EDT, 10 September 2026 | Updated: 07:20 EDT, 10 September 2026 The Conservative Party’s former director of campaigning today admitted cheating at gambling by betting on the date of the 2024 general election.Anthony Lee, 49, passed confidential information to his wife Laura, 38, so they could have a flutter in the final months of Rishi Sunak's premiership.The couple are among 15 individuals who were charged following a probe by the Gambling Commission.They appeared at Southwark Crown Court via videolink, sat between their lawyers and looking solemn.Mr Lee admitted cheating in gambling by placing bets on the general election and passing the confidential information to his wife.Mrs Lee, the Tory candidate for Bristol North West at the 2024 election and former head of international at Conservative Party HQ, admitted cheating in gambling by placing bets on the election based on the confidential information between March 10, 2024 and May 21, 2024.They will be sentenced on October 23.In June this year former Tory MP Craig Williams, 41, admitted having a flutter on the 2024 General Election using confidential information. Anthony Lee, 49, formerly the Conservative party's director of campaigns, admitted cheating in gambling by placing bets on the general election and passing the confidential information to his wife Lee's wife Laura, who was a Conservative candidate in the Bristol North West constituency, admitted cheating in gambling by placing bets on the election based on the confidential information between 10 March 2024 and 21 May 2024Rishi Sunak's former parliamentary private secretary Craig Williams previously also admitted cheating at gambling after he placed a bet on the date of the 2024 General Election (pictured on June 29)Williams was former PM Sunak’s parliamentary private secretary and the MP for Montgomeryshire and had attended a series of planning meetings in Downing Street ahead of the general election being announced.The politician, of Welshpool, Powys, bet £250, £100 and £22.50 on the election date, prosecutors said.They added three further cheating charges, which Williams denies, will be dropped when he is sentenced.Amy Hind, 35, whose husband Anthony Hind, 37, was a former deputy digital director for the Conservative Party, also previously pleaded guilty to cheating at gambling.She had placed bets of £10, £5 and £20 on the date of the election, before on May 13 2024 attempting to stake £767 and £700 on a July poll. Those attempts failed and she attempted to place a £700 bet the following day before successfully placing a £100 bet on a July election, at odds of 11-1. The prosecution earlier said it would not proceed with a charge against Mr Hind.Mrs Hind also faces sentence on October 23 while Williams will be sentenced at a later date.Twelve other defendants have denied the allegations against them, including former police officer Jeremy Hunt, 56, who was part of Sunak’s Metropolitan Police close protection team.The other defendants to deny cheating at gambling were Charlotte Lang, 37; Thomas James, 39; Russell George, 52; Simon Chatfield, 52; Iain Makepeace, 48; Nicholas Mason, 52; Paul Place, 55; James Ward, 41; and Jacob Willmer, 40.The first trial is due to begin on September 6, 2027.All defendants remain on unconditional bail.