Quote: lofthouse @ 20th June 2024, 11:50 AMSeems a few of them in the know bet on the election date (Illegal)
Not sure it's illegal. Immoral perhaps; contrary to Parliamentary rules certainly; but illegal? We are not talking "insider trading" here, which comes under the The Insider Dealing (Securities and Regulated Markets) Order 2023 within the Criminal Justice Act 1993. Gambling offences come under the separate Gambling Act 2005 of which Section 42 states:
(1)A person commits an offence if he--
a) cheats at gambling, or
b) does anything for the purpose of enabling or assisting another person to cheat at gambling.
(2)For the purposes of subsection (1) it is immaterial whether a person who cheats--
a) improves his chances of winning anything, or
b) wins anything.
(3)Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1) cheating at gambling may, in particular, consist of actual or attempted deception or interference in connection with--
a) the process by which gambling is conducted, or
b )a real or virtual game, race or other event or process to which gambling relates.
So, to be guilty of "cheating", which is the potential offence in question, he would need to be guilty of actual or attempted deception or of interference in the process.
It is unlikely that there was deception involved. As I understand it, the bets were made on on-line accounts and the bookmakers clearly knew who were placing the bets, which is why they raised the red flag. So they weren't trying to deceive anyone. And I wouldn't think that there was interference in the actual decision to call the election on the date in question.
Probably the only thing he was guilty of was knowing something that very few other people (including the bookies) knew. If that were illegal, then horse racing stable staff all over the country would be in the dock every day for backing their charges after a scintillating secret morning gallop.