Should politicians be accepting gifts from betting companies? Surely they should know better? UK ministers criticised for obvious nonchalance. (Photo by Visual Stories || Micheile on Unsplash)
Ester Mcvey and her partner Philip Davies have come under fire after accepting a series of expensive gifts in the form of free tickets to large events from certain betting companies. This comes at a time when the country’s gambling legislation is under review.
The couple from the Tory party has been publicly criticised by a number of the Liberal Democrats after McVey had openly admitted to receiving a donation of two tickets to this year’s British Grand Prix, which are believed to be worth close to £3000. Furthermore, it’s understood the pair were handed tickets to Royal Ascot this year by the thoroughbred breeding company, Normandie Stud.
It has also been reported by several media outlets that the couple has received various other VIP tickets to assorted events believed to total around £18,000, along with many other gifts from private betting businesses thought to be worth thousands.
With McVey characterised as a politician that supports the hard-working, honest Brit, it’s a wonder why she was also seen to accept donations of tickets to Wimbledon and Euro 2020 which are estimated to cost in the region of £9000 collectively. The benefactor, in this case, was betting powerhouse Entain which is a UK company also expanding into US markets. McVey and her husband were treated to VIP and hospitality tickets for England’s clash vs Denmark. Gamesys, which are also an online bingo and casino platform, has also been credited with donating to McVey and Davies.
Entain themselves have been at the centre of the gambling business’ endeavours to oppose the approaching changes to the UK’s betting regulations but the firm and McVey aren’t the only ones involved in this saga with 65 representatives of the Conservatives also owning up to accepting such gifts. This occurrence between May and July of this year is believed to total £160,000. Unfortunately, this doesn’t end there, as 23 representatives of Labour have admitted to accepting around £32,000 worth of tickets at about the same time.
Should ministers know better? The perks of being a government bigwig are obvious, but accepting gifts from gambling companies at the same time as a gambling legislation review is beyond responsible. The fact that these were allegedly ‘expensive’ gifts means that these ministers should have known better. It is tantamount to illegal lobbying at best. With social media today flies on the wall listening in, these government figures should have been more aware of their actions – but it looks like they thought they’d get away with it. Not something we want to see from the UK gambling scene. The UKGC is regarded as the top licensing authority, and it controls numerous UK online casinos.
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