Hancock ... get out of here, local councillors urge
Former minister told to do honourable thing and quit as MP as he joins reality TV show in Australian jungle
HE OFFICIALLY begins his attempt to become king of the jungle in Australia today, but back home Matt Hancock has already lost a far more important vote that has nothing to do with being chosen to eat kangaroo’s testicles.
After accusing him of abandoning his constituents, the council in the biggest town in Mr Hancock’s constituency has voted and decided he should “do the honourable thing and resign”.
The former health secretary has prompted ridicule in Westminster after absenting himself from Parliament to take part in the ITV reality show I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! and had the whip withdrawn.
Mr Hancock is convinced he can win over the public by rising to the challenge of the show’s bushtucker trials.
Appearing in a teaser last night, Mr Hancock said: “When I’m in camp people will just see the real me — people will see me, warts and all, the human side of the guy behind the podium.”
He added that he had “received a lot of supportive messages” from “people who can see what I am trying to do”.
However, there are signs that his stay in the jungle could be career-ending.
Mr Hancock, 44, has been the MP for West Suffolk since 2010 but there is speculation that he might stand down at the next general election after being overlooked for the Cabinet by Rishi Sunak then leaving his post to appear alongside celebrities including Mike Tindall, Boy George and Chris Moyles.
He has also filmed a series of another show, Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins, which will be shown next year. In Haverhill, where around 27,000 of his constituents live, the town council has told him to “clear the pitch” after its members decided by a majority in a vote that it should tell him to quit.
In a letter sent to his office, the 13-member council accused the MP of losing interest in his day job.
Written by council clerk Colin Poole, it says: “By a majority vote members of the council have directed me to express their displeasure at your decision to absent yourself from your duty to your constituents to join the cast of ITV’S I’m A Celebrity .... Get Me Out Of Here.
“Currently there is no-one to speak for West Suffolk in the House of Commons and your actions are unlikely to gain any sympathy for the area when all the other parliamentarians are in the chamber fighting their own corners.
“By your actions you have made it clear to everyone that you see your future outside of politics.”
The letter concludes by saying that the councillors “ask you to do the honourable thing and resign your seat so you can follow your chosen path and clear the pitch for someone who wants to serve the people of West Suffolk”.
In a statement released last night, Mr Hancock said “one of the reasons” he agreed to appear on the show was that a system had been put in place to ensure he “can be reached at any point on any urgent constituency matters”.
Mr Hancock is seen as such a big draw by I’m a Celebrity that his appearance has been held back until today.
Mr Sunak has said he backed the Chief Whip’s decision to suspend Mr Hancock from the Tory party, and said he was “disappointed” by his behaviour.
Mr Hancock resigned as Health Secretary last year after being caught on CCTV kissing an aide in a breach of Covid rules. He left his wife and is living with the former aide, Gina Coladangelo.
His constituents cannot force a recall petition to trigger a by-election, as parliamentary rules state MPS can only be recalled if they go to jail, suspended from Parliament for at least 10 days or convicted of fiddling their expenses.
Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Commons Speaker, has said Mr Hancock’s fate “lies with the people” , though he said he would not “go running around a jungle eating kangaroos’ testicles”.