Election latest: Chancellor deletes pic of wife voting after people pointed out he'd broken election rules (2024)

Away from the election campaign for a moment, and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has sent well wishes to Princess Anne after she sustained "minor injuries and a concussion" after an incident on Sunday evening.

It is understood emergency services were called to the scene of the incident on the Gatcombe Park estate, Gloucestershire, on Sunday, to treat injuries believed to have been caused by impact with a horse's head or leg.

The princess, 73, was then taken to Southmead Hospital for treatment, where the Olympic-medal winning horsewoman is expected to stay until later this week.

Mr Sunak said: "Everyone in the country is immensely fond of Her Royal Highness.

"We're all sending her our best wishes for a swift recovery."

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has deleted an image of his wife's postal ballot that he uploaded to social media over the weekend.

The chancellor posted a picture of his wife with a pen hovering over the box next to his name in the Godalming and Ash constituency he is contesting.

The caption read: "Marriage safe … got the wife's vote."

Social media users later pointed out it is illegal to show how someone has or intends to vote.

A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission said: "Every voter has the right to vote in private.

"The secrecy of the ballot is fundamental to our voting process and is protected in law.

"The law allows a postal voter to take a picture of their own postal ballot paper and publicise it (including via social media).

"It is an offence to pressurise or induce a postal voter, or indeed any voter, to make their information available.

"It can also be an offence to obtain and share information about how someone else has voted.

"These laws are enforced by the police."

There are seemingly three things on the minds of British people at the moment - the Euros, the election, and Taylor Swift.

But while the Royal Family have been quick to send their backing to England's footballers and catch the pop star's Eras shows at Wembley, they'll be keeping their distance from the politics.

That's despite the fact that, apart from the monarch, the royals are technically allowed to vote in UK general elections.

Sky News explains why they don't.

Lord Richard Dannatt, the former head of the army, has been asked for his opinion on what Nigel Farage said about the conflict in Ukraine.

Mr Farage claims the West provoked Russia's invasion.

In response, Lord Dannatt told the BBC: "As far as I'm concerned, Nigel Farage doesn't have a point worth listening to about anything."

On the wider point of a potential conclusion to the war, he said it was "entirely a matter" for Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to decide if negotiating with the Russians "would be a better thing to do [...] to save more lives than continue fighting".

The prime minister has said he believes he got the timing of the general election - which will take place on 4 July - right.

During a media huddle in Edinburgh, he was asked if he'd have wanted longer than the 10 days remaining to make his case.

He insisted it's "the right moment" for the country to have its say because the economy has turned a corner.

"The most important job I had when I was prime minister was to restore economic stability after what has been a really difficult few years with COVID and the war in Ukraine," he said.

"My priority was to bring inflation down, because inflation was eating into everyone’s pay packets, their savings, making everyone feel the challenges of the cost of living."

He said the UK economy grew faster than others in the G7 in the first quarter of the year.

Mr Sunak added: "That's why it's the right moment, now that we have that foundation, for the country to consider what future it wants."

Here is your afternoon bulletin.

We're into the last full week of the election campaign, with just 10 days left until polling day.

Here are the main things you need to know for this afternoon:

• Rishi Sunaksays he is not being investigated by the Gambling Commission over the betting scandal;
• He says the Conservative Party is carrying out its own investigation - and will pass its findings on to the Gambling Commission;
• The City of London Police says it has not been contacted by the commission - but will review the case if asked;
• The Liberal Democrats want the government ethics advisor to see if ministers placed bets.
• Meanwhile, economists lambasted a "conspiracy of silence" from the main parties over their tax and spending plans - read more below:

• Nigel Farage held an event in which he sought to repel attacks levelled at him over his stance on Russia;
  
• The Reform leader said last week the West had contributed to the invasion of Ukraine;
• He has launched a blistering attack aimed at his one-time ally Boris Johnson - highlighting a front page showing Mr Johnson holding a similar stance on Russia back in 2016;
• He called Mr Johnson the worst prime minister of "modern times":

Politics At Jack And Sam's discussed the run-in to the election in today's episode of the podcast.

👉Tap here to follow Politics at Jack and Sam's wherever you get your podcasts👈

Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch has been touted as potential leader of the Conservative Party in the future.

And she has hinted she may run to replace Rishi Sunak if he loses the vote on 4 July.

She unsuccessfully stood to be leader in 2022 after Boris Johnson was ousted, but won the backing of powerful figures like Michael Gove.

Asked about the leadership of the party in the future, Ms Badenoch said: "We need to focus on this election.

"The choice is going to be between us or between them (Labour).

"Be afraid if it is them, is all I would say.

"And we will talk about leadership things after an election, but not before."

She said her current gig has been "the job of a lifetime".

In a not entirely unprecedented move, the Liberal Democrats are calling for government to take more steps to address the betting scandal.

Daisy Cooper, the party's deputy leader, has written to Sir Laurie Magnus calling for an official probe.

Sir Laurie is the government’s ethics adviser - and led the investigation into Nadhim Zahawi that ultimately saw the minister sacked.

In her letter, Ms Cooper wrote: "If any ministers are found to have used their privileged position to place bets on the date of the election, or were indirectly involved in any way, this could amount to a clear breach of the ministerial code."

She adds: "With the general election just 10 days away, I hope you would agree that the public deserves urgent clarity and answers about the scale of this scandal and whether any ministers were involved, and if a breach of the code has occurred."

Currently, the election betting scandal is being investigated by the Gambling Commission - the watchdog for gambling in the UK.

However, the City of London Police has told Sky News it would review the case if the commission decides to pass over the files.

Assistant commissioner Nik Adams, the force's lead for the election, said: "We have not been contacted by the Gambling Commission regarding an investigation into bets placed on the general election.

"However, if they conclude their investigation and decide to make a referral, we will conduct a thorough review."

The City of London force take the national lead on financial crime and similar cases.

We've heard from Rishi Sunak and Nigel Farage already this hour - and now we've seen Sir Keir Starmer.

The Labour leader has been at a rally in Northamptonshire, where he gave his response to the breaking news that the Tories have launched their own investigation into the betting scandal engulfing the party.

Sir Keir isn't impressed, saying it's an attempt by the prime minister to "kick this into the long grass on the other side of the election".

He says an investigation into who had placed bets should have been launched last week and "only take half an hour".

Sir Keir says the scandal "goes to the heart of what the Tories have become", when candidates see an election as a chance to make money, and repeats his call for suspensions.

He says the "chaos, division, and failure" of the last 14 years are once again being displayed in the Conservative campaign.