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Two admit General Election betting offences

29 June 2026

Today, Monday 29 June 2026, Craig Williams and Amy Hind have pleaded guilty to offences of cheating, contrary to section 42(1)(a) of the Gambling Act 2005.

The 2024 General Election date of 4 July 2024 was announced to the public by then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on 22 May 2024. In advance of this announcement there was significant planning for a 4 July 2024 General Election. Planning happened at 10 Downing Street and amongst staff at Conservative Campaign Headquarters.

Before the date of the General Election was announced, various gambling operators offered special markets in the lead up to the election announcement as to when the General Election would be held.

This was not a market to be abused by those with inside information as to when the election would be held. These two defendants placed bets themselves. In doing so, they cheated. They did so by using confidential and sensitive information about the date of the 2024 General Election in order to profit.

In October 2022, Craig Williams became Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, and in November 2023 was sworn in as a member of the King's Privy Council. Craig Williams was the MP for Montgomeryshire, a constituency in Wales, from December 2019 to May 2024 until the dissolution of Parliament. As a result of his privileged position Craig Williams attended various meetings with the Prime Minister and senior staff at Conservative Central Headquarters during which the date of the General Election was discussed. This was highly sensitive and confidential information but instead of keeping it secret Craig Williams sought to profit from it.

Amy Hind worked for the NHS as a Business Support Manager. In the past she had worked for the Conservative Party in various roles. Amy Hind placed bets on the 2024 General Election with the benefit of confidential information passed to her about when that election would be called.

Amy Hind is due to be sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on 23 October. Craig Williams will be sentenced at a later date.

The trials of 12 remaining defendants will take place in September 2027 and January 2028.

Last updated: 29 June 2026

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