Gamblegate: A media-driven storm in a teacup

We have seen a significant amount of media coverage in recent days about the Tory betting scandal, following allegations of senior members of the Conservative party using insider knowledge to place bets on a July General Election, in the days before the formal announcement by the Prime Minister.

Rightly, those individuals from within the party who are accused of breaching gambling regulations and abusing their position in order to profit from illegal betting activity are being investigated and face potential criminal proceedings, and expulsion from the Conservative party.

It is widely acknowledged that, if found guilty, then this represents an act of wrongdoing by those involved, and that this is a headache Rishi Sunak could well do without just one week from polling day.

However, the amount of media coverage of this story is, as usual, disproportionate to the involvement of those at the top of the party, especially the Prime Minister himself. The way the press is reporting on the story is typical of the obsession over recent years of the predominantly left-wing establishment medias in looking to negatively influence public opinion of the Conservative Government.

Let’s remind ourselves that no senior Tory MPs have had any involvement in these irregularities. Those accused are unelected privately-hired back office staff, not democratically elected public servants. Whilst the acts themselves warrant investigation and punishment, they should not reflect negatively on Rishi or his senior party members, who have had literally nothing to do with the activities in question.

However, listening to the BBC/ITV/Channel 4/Sky News, you would think that this is the biggest political scandal since The Profumo Affair. They have labelled it “Gamblegate”, and are comparing it to Partygate (another example of a media-driven circus stirred up by the left-wing press with a specific agenda to bring down the Boris Johnson Government).

The reality is, had we been talking about members of the Labour party engaging in these betting activities, you can guarantee that the media coverage would be minimal. It would be branded a “non-story” and attention would be deflected back onto the Tory party in some way or other.

Let’s be honest… this is not a matter that warrants anywhere near the level of attention it has received. Had the individuals involved been elected MPs, then potentially that would be a different story. However, the ferocity with which the media have sought to escalate this story into something capable of bringing down the entire Tory party is another example of how universally biased our press has become.  It is a sad indictment of our press that they continue to seek any opportunity possible to drive the knife deeper into the Tory party carcass.

Thankfully, with the election taking place next week, the media will have more important things to focus on, and this story will become next Friday’s chip paper.

Editors note: Shortly after publication of this post, a Labour parliamentary candidate, Kevin Craig, also became embroiled in the betting scandal, having placed a bet that he would lose to the Conservatives in the contest for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich. In addition, 6 Met Police officers are also under investigation for betting irregularities. As expected however, this has been treated as a side note by the media, who continue to focus on Conservative party involvement. Is anyone surprised??