Two more figures closely linked to the UK Conservative Party have pleaded guilty to cheating offences under the Gambling Act 2005.
Anthony Lee was the Conservatives’ Head of Campaigning during the run up to the 2024 UK general election. He and his wife, Laura Lee (then-Saunders), have admitted to placing bets on the date of that election using confidential information.
At the time, Laura was the Conservatives’ Head of International and ran for MP in the 2024 Bristol North West by-election.
The Gambling Commission confirmed the guilty pleas in an update yesterday, adding that the couple, alongside Amy Hind, are due to be sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on 23 October 2026.
Anthony stood to win around £15,000 after placing over 60 bets which totalled £1,549, while Laura would have won approximately £5,000 from wagering £535 in eight separate bets.
It comes as an update to a wider investigation in which 13 other individuals were charged by the Commission for breaching the 2005 Gambling Act.
Conservative figures charged alongside Anthony and Laura Lee:
- Simon Chatfield
- Russell George
- Anthony Hind
- Thomas James
- Charlotte Lang
- Amy Hind
- Iain Makepeace
- Nick Mason
- Paul Place
- Craig Williams
- James Ward
- Jeremy Hunt
- Jacob Wilmer
A wide range of UK gambling operators were offering special markets in the lead up to the July 2024 election as to when it would be held.
The Commission said: “This was not a market to be abused by those with inside information as to when the election would be held.
“Anthony Lee was the Conservative Party’s Director of Campaigning. As a result of his senior role, Anthony Lee was party to highly sensitive discussions about the timing of the General Election, held at Conservative Campaign Headquarters and involving senior party staff. Instead of keeping this information confidential, Anthony Lee used it to place bets and passed it on to his wife.
“Laura Lee was Head of International for the Conservative Party and the Conservative candidate for Bristol North-West at the 2024 General Election.
“Laura Lee placed bets on the 2024 General Election with the benefit of confidential information passed to her by her husband about when that election would be called.”
In June, former Conservative MP Williams and ex-Conservative staffer Amy Hind pleaded guilty to the charges.
Anthony Hind, Amy Hind’s husband and the Conservatives’ Deputy Digital Director, reportedly had charges against him dropped by prosecutors around the same time that his wife pleaded guilty.
It brings political betting under the spotlight once again in the UK.
Political events remain popular gambling markets for punters here, as shown by the record-breaking Makerfield by-election for Betfair and later the amount of money wagered on the Clacton by-election.
However, it can be subject to insider trading, which has also become a major focus for federal regulators and lawmakers in the US following the rapid rise of prediction markets.