Labor candidate who bet on himself to lose cleared of wrongdoing

The Tories was not the only party that got in hot water over its members' propensity to bet on themselves to lose the general vote held earlier this year - a Labor candidate was also caught out betting on his defeat

Kevin Craig, a UK Labor candidate for the Central Suffolk and North Ipswich seat, was cleared of wrongdoing following an investigation into his betting on the general election earlier this year.

Political betting scandal in the UK continues to simmer down

Craig joined a fairly long list of politicians who had bet on themselves to lose their bid for election, raising concerns about the honesty and integrity of elections not just in the United Kingdom, but across the pond in the United States.

Craig did lose the race to Tory MP Patrick Spencer, but he cashed in on the wager. The UK Gambling Commission has found the £800 ($1,000)wager placed by Craig on himself to lose, while morally questionable, was not sufficient grounds for prosecution.

Interestingly, though, Craig did not shy away from embracing his gambling hobby in public, arguing that he was indeed an avid gambler, known for placing hundreds of wagers annually, and offering a rather odd explanation that betting on himself to lose was meant to "soften the blow" should he not win the seat.

He added that the profit he would have made had he won was merely £400 ($500), arguing his case.

As Craig’s legal team argued, the candidate did not benefit from any insider information – what the Tories were accused of after former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called a general election without notifying his party members, many of whom later turned out to have known the matter before it became public knowledge.

No politician should have his career ruined any more, argues Craig

Even Sunak’s bodyguards were investigated in the fallout of the scandal, but eventually cleared of wrongdoing. Craig, however, has set out to remedy the situation and drafted a new bill fittingly called "Gambling on Elections Bill," which aims to prohibit candidates from gambling on elections in the future, having learned from the experience.

However, his motivation may be different than what you think it is. Rather than admit mea culpa, Craig argued that he didn’t want any other politicians’ candidacy to be killed by a meritless accusation in the future.

Therefore, banning the activity would seem like the right call to make – for politicians. For constituents, however, the matter of why a politician needs to bet on himself to lose public trust is still a bit of a puzzler.

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