West Suffolk MP Matt Hancock took part in I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! last year, hot on the heels of his pandemic scandal to the shock of both his fellow campmates and the entirety of the UK. Hancock was forced to resign from his position as health secretary in disgrace in June, 2021 after it was revealed through a damning video that he had broken the pandemic rules he himself made to cheat on his wife with an employee of his.
Excellent behavior all around, really, but Hancock then capped this all off the following year by entering the Jungle to “do things differently.”
“The truth is, I haven’t lost my marbles or had one too many Pina Coladas,” the politician said in his announcement. “Like you, politicians are human, with hopes and fears, and normal emotions just like everyone else. Where better to show the human side of those who make these decisions than with the most-watched programme on TV?”
However, what Hancock appeared to be missing was that Parliament was still sitting—meaning he still very much had an elected job to do, representing the people of West Suffolk in the House of Commons. When pushed on this minor issue on the show, Hancock didn’t seem to see any issue with it, arguing that: “I genuinely think that because we’ve got the sort of stability that is…”
Fellow I’m A Celeb contestant Charlene White clapped back quickly, saying: “We’ve had stability for all of five minutes!”, referring to the fact that the UK had just ushered in its third PM in the span of a few short months. To which Matt Hancock replied: “No but Rishi’s great, he’ll be fine.”
Nothing to worry about then, clearly. Plus, it’s not like Hancock will be profiting from his appearance on the show himself, of course.
“I want to raise the profile of my dyslexia campaign to help every dyslexic child unleash their potential—even if it means taking an unusual route to get there … via the Australian jungle!” the MP explained in a statement. “I’m A Celebrity … is watched by millions of Brits up and down the country. I want to use this incredible platform to raise awareness, so no child leaves primary school not knowing if they have dyslexia.”
Indeed, he also pledged to donate money he earned from the show to charity. All good then … right?
Wrong. Hancock used his time on the show to not-so-subtly plug his upcoming book and then, upon leaving the Jungle, donated a grand total of 3% of his £320,000 show fee to charity. But of course Matt, it’s all about your charitable efforts. Naturally.
This comes just a few short weeks after Hancock also declared he earned £45,000 for appearing on another TV show, Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins. You really can’t make this up.
The flagrant disrespect to all the people who missed saying goodbye to loved ones or lost jobs to adhere to the rules, while Hancock flaunted the rules on camera can never be undone, quite frankly. However, it would be nice to see a Tory MP, for once, show some modicum of remorse for their actions, rather than continuing to make it All About Them. Judging from Hancock’s selfish profiteering, it seems that this is a pipe dream that I’ll have to continue chasing for now.
(featured image: Hollie Adams/Getty Images)
