Suspended candidate Kevin Craig gave £15k to Ipswich Labour

The campaign to get Jack Abbott elected as Ipswich MP received two gifts totalling  £15,124 from Mr Craig shortly after the election was called - before he was suspended by the party.

The figures are included in the Register of Members' Financial Interests published by the House of Commons this week.

Mr Craig's suspension came after officials learned that the Gambling Commission was investigating a claim that he had bet against himself to win the Central Suffolk and North Ipswich seat.

Kevin Craig was suspended as candidate for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich. (Image: Kevin Craig/Labour Party)

Once news of the suspension emerged, the donation was separated from the rest of campaign funds and the Ipswich Labour Party is now in the process of returning the money to Mr Craig.

Labour emphasised that campaign expenses are not payments  to candidates - it is used to cover the costs of running a big campaign.

Mr Craig said: "I will say more about all of this when I am totally cleared by the Gambling Commission and told that I will face no further action. The process has felt very slow so far and it has put my life on pause.  You don’t get told how long it will take. 

 "I am hopeful in due course once the dust settles that all those returning donations made with the best of intentions might reflect on how them being returned made me feel as someone who has proudly supported and served the Labour Party for decades."

The Register also revealed that West Suffolk MP Nick Timothy earns £145,000 a year from The Daily Telegraph as a columnist - a task that he says takes him three hours a week.

Mr Timothy had been writing for the Telegraph for several years after he was one of Theresa May's Chiefs of Staff while she was Prime Minister between 2016 and 2019.