Bewritings

The new season of I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! made headlines recently when it was revealed that the ex-health secretary Matt Hancock would be one of this year’s contestants. Hancock entered as a “surprise” late arrival in the twenty-second season’s fourth episode. However, Hancock’s involvement was leaked to the public shortly before the season aired.

After being elected the Conservative MP for West Suffolk in 2010, he entered government in 2012 serving a range of Ministerial Roles. Hancock later served as the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care between July 9th 2018 and June 26th 2021. During this time, Hancock received immense criticism for his handling of the Covid pandemic.

For example, former Chief Adviser to the Prime Minister, Dominic Cummings, argued that Hancock should have been sacked “almost every day”, for his “criminal” behaviour. Cummings did not stop there, as he condemned Hancock for “lying to everybody on multiple occasions” and performing “far, far disastrously below the standards which the country expects”. He also published a series of messages, in which the previous Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, called Hancock “totally fucking hopeless”.

During his time as health secretary, Hancock was involved in countless controversies. For example, in May 2020, he was criticised by the UK Statistics Authority when it was revealed that the target of 100,000 daily Covid tests had been met only by altering the counting method.

In addition, in February 2021 the high court found that the government’s failure to publish details of billions of pounds worth of covid related contracts was unlawful. Hancock was ruled to have “breached his legal obligation to publish contract award notices within 30 days of the award of contracts” after using “vast quantities of public money” in 2020 on procurement.

Perhaps one of the most shocking developments under Hancock was the decision to discharge hospital patients into care homes without testing them for Covid-19. Consequently, over 40,000 care home deaths involved Covid-19. Earlier this year, this decision was deemed unlawful by the High Court.

However, all of these controversies were not what ultimately led to his resignation as health secretary. Instead, photographs of him embracing Gina Coladangelo, his aide, emerged: exposing his extramarital affair. This appeared as CCTV from inside the Department of Health and Social Care and Hancock resigned a day later.

The Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, has criticised Hancock for appearing on the show. At the G20 Summit, the Prime Minister was asked whether Hancock was ‘making a fool of himself’ by entering the jungle. In response, Sunak condemned the decision saying he was “disappointed.” When discussing the role of politicians, Sunak continued:

“They want to make a difference to their communities, they want to make a difference to their country and so when that works well it’s a special thing but you have to earn people’s respect right, it is not given just because you are a politician.”

“Though I do think, as you’ve said, it is incumbent on all MPs to do the things that earn people’s respect and that’s serving your constituents really well, making a difference to them in surgeries, it is how you conduct yourself.”

Conservative MP Tim Loughton told Times Radio Hancock was an “absolute prat”.

“I’m completely disappointed and disgusted that he’s put his self and a so-called celebrity career ahead of serving his constituents.”

In addition, Ian Houlder is a Conservative councillor on the West Suffolk Council: Hancock’s constituency. Houlder commented that Hancock had “no shame” and that “he’s a damn awful role model.”

In response to Hancock’s arrival, Ofcom has received over 1,100 complaints, as Hancock is arguably one of the most controversial contestants to enter the jungle since the show began in 2002. The criticism does not stop there, however, as a group of protestors flew an anti-Matt Hancock banner over the jungle. The 30 ft banner read “Covid bereaved say get out of here,” which remained above the campsite for around 2 hours. The stunt was orchestrated by 38 Degrees, a not-for-profit activist group, after they received over 45,000 signatures on a petition to have Hancock removed.

There has been public outrage for the distastefulness of Hancock being able to enter the show. It is reported that Hancock is being paid £400,000 for the appearance whilst being able to maintain his £84,000 MP salary. Many have pointed out how the majority of the general public would never be able to leave their job for three weeks and still maintain their position, a consensus that is only heightened by the cost of living crisis. Despite being suspended from the Conservative party, Hancock is still an MP. Instead, he is considered an independent MP for his constituency, West Suffolk. The Liberal Democrats have argued that Hancock should have his MP salary capped during his time on the show.

Hancock’s ability to enter the show whilst maintaining his salary has been further criticised, with many MPs highlighting he should be committed to his constituency and duties. MPs have also shown concern that Hancock was not able to attend the preliminary hearings of The Covid-19 Inquiry.

Hancock joining the cast this year is seemingly blurring the line between celebrity and politician. It appears as a blatant attempt at “re-branding” his image, as Hancock himself says he “doesn’t expect to serve in Government again”. A close friend of Hancock’s commented: “where better to show the human side of those who make these decisions than with the most watched programme on TV?”

However, those who were negatively impacted by Hancock’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic see this as no more than an exploitative move. Dr Cathy Gardener’s father was one of the 11,000 care home residents in England whose death was Covid-19 related, in March and April 2020. Gardener commented that “to see [Hancock] just paraded on television, like he’s some kind of fun figure, so he can make some money and make himself into some kind of fake celebrity” was “insulting” and “completely sick.”

This appears to be the consensus amongst many viewers. Hancock seemingly shows a disregard for his role in the mishandling of the pandemic, and by extension the thousands of Covid-related deaths. This seems all the more distasteful due to Hancock seemingly having no regrets and little remorse for his involvement: “ultimately, those problems were caused by the virus, not the people who were trying to solve the problem.

This article was published in the print edition of The Badger, the student newspaper at University of Sussex.