ALISTER Jack's suitability for a peerage must be investigated following recent revelations he gambled on the date of the General Election, an SNP candidate has demanded.
David Wilson, the SNP’s candidate in Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk, has written to the chair of the House of Lords Appointments Commission to ask whether Jack is being probed before being handed a seat in the upper chamber.
If this is not the case, Wilson has insisted this happens immediately as it is a “matter of serious public interest”.
The Scottish Secretary – who is widely expected to appear on Rishi Sunak's resignation honours list – told the press he had won more than £2000 betting on the election but later claimed it was a “joke”.
As backlash grew, Jack was forced to admit that he actually had placed three bets on the General Election and won £100. However, he maintained he had not broken any rules and was not being investigated by the Gambling Commission.
However, the appropriateness of him being given a spot in the Lords after the election has since been questioned, with Sunak’s final honours list to be published soon after Thursday’s vote.
Professor Dan Hough, the director of the Sussex Centre for the Study of Corruption (SCSC), suggested last week that bets from top Tories like Jack could constitute a “criminal offence” due to the likelihood that they were placed with insider knowledge.
In his letter to Baroness Ruth Deech, Wilson said Jack’s actions have fallen below a standard Scottish people would expect of those who sit in the Lords.
He wrote: “The information provided by Mr Jack is unclear and sporadic. I cannot comment on his motives for this.
“However, it appears Alister Jack claims he placed a successful bet in April with a stake of £20 at odds of 5/1. This would account for a return of £120.
“In contradiction, Mr Jack has claimed separately to the BBC that he won £2100 from a bet on the UK General Election date.
“Although the House of Lords is an unelected chamber, the Scottish public rightly demand a level of standard from those who hold public office. Clearly, allegations of insider betting fall below that standard.
“This is a matter of serious public interest, and I would appreciate an understanding if Alister Jack has been placed under investigation by the House of Lords Appointments Commission to rule on his suitability for an upcoming peerage.
“If he has not, I request – with the interests of the Scottish electorate in mind – that Alister Jack is placed under immediate investigation by The House of Lords Appointments Commission to look further into this issue ahead of taking up his peerage later this year.”
First Minister John Swinney last week said Jack should be barred from getting a peerage for his “completely and utterly unethical” behaviour.
In May 2023, Jack was nominated for a life peerage by his close ally Boris Johnson, in the disgraced former prime minister’s resignation honours list.
Accepting the seat in the Lords would have triggered a by-election in his Dumfries and Galloway constituency, and Jack declined to take it.
Instead, there were rumours of a "sleazy backroom deal with Rishi Sunak" to delay the peerage.
As a result, Jack is widely expected to appear on the current Prime Minister’s resignation honours list.
Others caught up in the betting scandal include the party’s chief data officer Nick Mason, campaign director Tony Lee, Sunak’s closest Commons aide Craig Williams, ex-Tory Bristol North West candidate Laura Saunders, Welsh Conservative member of the Senedd Russell George and former Labour candidate for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, Kevin Craig - all of whom are being investigated by the Gambling Commission.
Seven Metropolitan Police officers have also been placed under investigation over bets on election timing, one being a protection officer for the Prime Minister.
Police are examining whether offences beyond cheating using inside information had been committed, while the Gambling Commission said it was making “rapid progress” in its parallel investigation.
