‘I’m only human’: UK health secretary who flouted own COVID restrictions defends himself
UK former Health Secretary Matt Hancock last week tried defending himself against accusations that he has escaped accountability for violating the COVID-19 rules he had forced on the country.
Hancock sparked outrage in June 2021 after The Sun published photos of the health secretary locked in amorous embrace with paramour Gina Coladangelo after insisting Britons follow his physical distancing rules.
Months prior, Hancock blamed a surge in COVID-19 infections on people who were violating physical distancing rules.
“The rise in the number of cases we have seen in the last few days is concerning,” the then-health secretary said in September 2020. “It just reinforces the point that people must follow the social distancing rules, they are so important. . . . The whole country needs to following social distancing. We can only do this as a whole society — everybody has a role to play.”
Then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who was forced to resign for partying while he locked down citizens, said at the time that he “forgave” Hancock. However, the widespread backlash in response to the scandal ultimately led to Hancock’s resignation.
But rather than fade into shadows of shame, Hancock transitioned to popular stardom when he was paid £320,000 (~$385,380) to appear on ITV’s reality show I’m a Celebrity . . . Get Me Out of Here! in late 2022. He was also paid £48,000 (~$57,807) for a book deal.
Last week, Good Morning Britain co-host Kate Garraway suggested to Hancock that he “still doesn’t get why people are cross” about the “vast” amount of money he is receiving after betraying the British people.
Hancock said it was important that he put out the book to be “completely open with the public.”
"I feel like it's my duty because we're all human, we all make mistakes," he added.
In September 2020 Hancock said he was “speechless” after learning that Imperial College COVID-19 Response Team head Prof. Neil Ferguson violated physical distancing with his paramour.
“Prof Ferguson is a very eminent and impressive scientist and the science that he has done has been an important part of what we’ve listened to. I think he took the right decision to resign. I think the social distancing rules are very important and people should follow them,” he said at the time.
Garraway told Hancock that she was unable to visit her husband, Derek Draper, when he was ill in the hospital and could not see his children due to the “guidelines”.
Good Morning Britain co-host Susanna Reid also confronted Hancock last week about escaping accountability after breaking the law, which Hancock denied.
“No, it wasn’t a breach of the law, it was a breach of the guidelines,” Hancock said.
Reid argued with Hancock, saying the law at the time only allowed gatherings of two or more people for work purposes. She also said “people find it remarkable” that he was not being held accountable for something “most other people weren't allowed to do.”
“Well, it doesn’t feel like I got away with it, Susanna. Of course it wasn’t breaking the law, because the legal rules weren’t in place,” Hancock replied.
Reid again swung at Hancock:
REID: “Lots of people find it completely astonishing that you could stand at the podium month after month telling people to stick to the rules, but for some reason, they didn’t apply to you. Why not?”
HANCOCK: “Well, I’m only human.”
REID: “Sorry, the whole country is only human.”
HANCOCK: “Yeah, I understand that.”
He added: “This is what I’ve asked for forgiveness in the jungle for. I’m human, I’ve described in my book what happened and how it happened right at the end of the pandemic. But that isn't an excuse and that's why I've been open about it, I suppose. We all have our frailties, and I fell in love."
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