As the UK’s General Election approaches, gambling has unexpectedly become a hot campaign topic.
At least 15 Conservative candidates and officials are facing inquiries by the Gambling Commission for alleged bets on the timing of the election.
Meanwhile, a Labour candidate has lost his party’s support after betting against himself winning the seat. He claimed he planned on “giving any winnings to local charities.”
Conservative MPs using insider information to bet on the date of the election would be an offence. A Labour MP betting that he will lose is weird.
However, the political skulduggery has shone light on another betting scandal. Asked about his own gambling habits, Labour leader Keir Starmer replied, “I have never placed a political bet. I only bet on the horses.”
You Bet They Die
On average, a horse dies every other day on a UK racecourse.
Behind the scenes, the picture is even uglier.
According to Animal Aid, some 13,000 foals are born into the British and Irish racing industries each year. Many of those not cut out for racing will be shot at stables or killed for meat. Those who do “make the grade” endure brutal training. Injuries are rife: some 75% of race horses suffer from bleeding lungs, which can cause blood to leak from their nostrils.
It might seem to Starmer that a flutter on the horses is an innocuous activity.
However, the cruelty of horse racing is not banal. Nor is it inevitable.
In contrast to Labour’s casual endorsement of cruel sports, the Green Party’s manifesto includes a pledge to put an “end to the use of horses and greyhounds in racing”.
End industry ties
When Animal Rising advertised their intention to disrupt the Epsom Derby in June 2023, the Jockey Club, which runs Epsom Downs Racecourse, was granted an injunction from the High Court.
Non-violent protestors trying to protect innocent animals from harm were consequently subjected to excessive punishment.
Ben Newman, who took part in the protest, was sentenced to two months’ imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to pay £10,000 towards the Jockey Club’s costs for breaking the injunction.
Horse racing and gambling industries hold outsized power in the UK.
It was widely rumoured that the Conservative government might have been influenced in its decision to delay imposing a coronavirus lockdown in March 2020 by Cheltenham Festival.
Indeed, it was later revealed that two Conservative MPs accepted eight tickets to the meeting from gambling industry giants.
Poverty and animal abuse
In April 2024, Stephanie Peacock, a Labour MP and Shadow Minister, proudly posted that she had “placed a charity bet” on the Grand National.
The Grand National is widely acknowledged as the cruellest of UK horse races.
As well as promoting animal abuse, Peacock’s promotion of William Hill was condemned as a poverty-normalising stunt.
The gambling industry has faced accusations of preying on vulnerable customers, while making extraordinary sums of money.
Rather than facilitating animal cruelty and gambling addiction, MPs should donate directly to foodbanks. Or, better still, work to create a kinder society where they are no longer needed. ★
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