Hancock’s career was over 41 hours after news of affair with his aide broke
Matt Hancock damian on phone now [25/06/2021, 17:40:40]
Allan Nixon
Tracey is a no. I wouldn’t call her. She still loves you. Will tell you more about our chat later
[25/06/2021, 17:46:29]
Allan Nixon
From Greg:
I don’t see any politician tweeting about it, to be honest, one way or another. I think it might add some legs. Will hold off for now. [25/06/2021, 17:46:44]
Allan Nixon
Bowie is a yes but not right now [25/06/2021, 17:54:36]
Allan Nixon
William Hague’s staffer has been in touch to say:
William has just been on Times Radio saying Matt shdnt resign as (1) private matter and (2) Matt so experienced w Covid not good for the country to change Health Sec. [25/06/2021, 17:58:41]
Allan Nixon
Have flagged to Damo [25/06/2021, 17:58:47]
Matt Hancock
That is f----- brilliant [25/06/2021, 17:59:57]
He is so impressed by the intervention he immediately sends it to Crisis Management to chat.
Matt Hancock
William Hague’s staffer has been in touch to say: William has just been on Times Radio saying Matt shdnt resign as (1) private matter and (2) Matt so experienced w Covid not good for the country to change Health Sec. [25/06/2021, 18:00:05]
Matt Hancock
Golddust
[25/06/2021, 18:00:15]
But it appears that Lord Hague’s intervention is not enough to stem the tide of criticism and Mr Cole gets in touch with more information from a source at Mr Hancock’s ministerial office, leading to the admission that the office kiss was not “exactly a one off ”.
Damon Poole
Source says they were kissing again as late as this week in the office…. Any response? [25/06/2021, 18:37:52]
Damon Poole
Ignoring this [25/06/2021, 18:38:04]
Damon Poole
From Cole [25/06/2021, 18:38:07]
Damon Poole
But is this true [25/06/2021, 18:38:14]
Gina Coladangelo
FFS [25/06/2021, 18:38:16]
Gina Coladangelo
yes [25/06/2021, 18:38:19]
Matt Hancock
Yes [25/06/2021, 18:38:20]
Damon Poole
When and what time [25/06/2021, 18:38:50]
Matt Hancock
It wasn’t exactly a one off [25/06/2021, 18:38:53]
Damon Poole
F--- knows how they’ve got that [25/06/2021, 18:38:56]
Gina Coladangelo
CCTV [25/06/2021, 18:39:01]
Matt Hancock
From the same CCTV [25/06/2021, 18:39:07]
Gina Coladangelo
they have clearly been watching the whole bloody time
[25/06/2021, 18:39:18]
Damon Poole
Yes but means the source left VERY recently [25/06/2021, 18:39:19]
Matt Hancock
SOMEONE INSTALLED A CAMERA IN MY OFFICE WITHOUT TELLING ME! [25/06/2021, 18:39:21]
Matt Hancock
Yes [25/06/2021, 18:39:33]
Damon Poole
Worth relaying to security [25/06/2021, 18:39:44]
Ms Colandangelo has, by this time, made a decision to resign as a nonexecutive director, but they take care to ensure any announcement does not appear to admit wrongdoing.
Gina Coladangelo
Do you think I should step back tonight for papers tomorrow? [25/06/2021, 19:32:06]
Matt Hancock no [25/06/2021, 19:32:37]
Matt Hancock
definitely not [25/06/2021, 19:32:41]
Matt Hancock it adds to pressure on me to go [25/06/2021, 19:32:49]
Damon Poole
Defo not [25/06/2021, 19:34:08]
Gina Coladangelo
Ok [25/06/2021, 19:37:42]
Then, at almost 10pm, the news breaks that The Sun has CCTV footge of the embrace. Mr Hancock’s first reactions is that there is “not much news value” in it.
Gina Coladangelo
OMFG [25/06/2021, 21:58:04]
Matt Hancock
Crikey. Not sure there’s much news value in that and I can’t say it’s very enjoyable viewing [25/06/2021, 22:01:33]
Damon Poole
Sorry to flag this but [25/06/2021, 23:37:20]
Damon Poole
[shares image] [25/06/2021, 23:37:29]
Damon Poole
This video does look doctored [25/06/2021, 23:37:38]
At 11.54am, “disappearing messages” are turned on in the Crisis Management chat, so the precise arrangements for Mr Hancock’s resignation remain secret.
At 14.48, he sent the first draft of his resignation letter to George Osborne, whom he had previously worked for and had become his mentor. Mr Hancock had told the former chancellor that “I may need your advice tmrw” before the news had broken. Mr Osborne, the following morning, agreed to help, but it appears that most of his guidance was given offline.
Mr Hancock sends him a second version of the letter and then a copy of the video he would later put on his Twitter account in which he announced his resignation. Mr Osborne reminds him that he should probably apologise to his family and cautions him against revealing that he had fallen in love with Ms Coladangelo, with whom, by his own account, he has been in a relationship for seven weeks.
Matt Hancock
video omitted [26/06/2021, 16:43:32]
Matt Hancock
Thoughts? [26/06/2021, 16:43:46]
George Osborne
We’ll leave out the last 2 seconds!! It’s good - and emotional. II like the ‘only human’ The key question is whether you want to use the word ‘love’ - it feels a little awkward and premature. And you probably want to include the apology to your loved ones you have in the letter
[26/06/2021, 16:52:29]
Matt Hancock
Reshooting without love [26/06/2021, 16:53:36]
Mr Hancock reveals in his book that Mr Johnson filmed the resignation video in the garden of Chequers. He also shared it, pre-publication, with Mr Doyle.
Jack Doyle
This is good. If you have time for another go I would shoot upright and ideally less space between top of head and frame. Try not to smile at all. If you do the love line - and I think that’s fine - I would do ‘but that is no excuse for what happened’. [26/06/2021, 16:47:45]
Matt Hancock
I’ll fire the cameraman! [26/06/2021, 16:50:12]
Matt Hancock
Are you 100% sure uptight? [26/06/2021, 16:52:05]
Matt Hancock
Upright? [26/06/2021, 16:52:09]
Jack Doyle
Think on balance love might be too much [26/06/2021, 16:52:02]
Matt Hancock
Agrrr [26/06/2021, 16:52:26]
Jack Doyle
And don’t say f--- at the end [26/06/2021, 16:52:28]
Matt Hancock
We are reshooting [26/06/2021, 16:52:33]
Matt Hancock
Upright or across? [26/06/2021, 16:52:47]
Jack Doyle
Definitely phone upright [26/06/2021, 16:54:16]
A video announcing Mr Hancock’s resignation, ending his ministerial career, was posted on his Twitter account at 6.16pm, just over 41 hours after the news of the affair broke.
gal?” Mr Njoku-goodwin said: “Not any more, all thanks to Rishi ...” and Mr Hancock replied: “He hasn’t launched another eat out to help the virus get about has he?” and accompanied the message with a “scream” emoji.
His adviser replied: “Got to give the virus a fighting chance, given how well you’re doing with vaccines and testing right now.”
Four months earlier on Aug 24 – while the scheme was still operating – Mr Hancock had mentioned his concerns about the scheme to Mr Case in a Whatsapp conversation.
Mr Hancock told the senior civil servant, promoted the next month to Cabinet Secretary: “Just want to let you know directly that we have had lots of feedback that Eat Out to help out is causing problems in our intervention areas. I’ve kept it out of the news but it’s serious. So please please lets not allow the economic success of the scheme to lead to its extension.”
Health officials had warned the Treasury of the dangers, said Mr Hancock, adding that his communications team had been “protecting them” and that “thankfully” the issue had not “bubbled up”.
Mr Case said Mr Sunak could not “afford to extend” the scheme. He said his local restaurants had been “insanely packed” at the start of the week and “then totally deserted” from Thursdays onwards.
A Warwick University study from October 2020 concluded that the scheme had “caused a significant rise in new infections … accelerating the pandemic into its current second wave”.