Piers Morgan calls for ‘outrageous and pathetic’ Matt Hancock to step down

Piers Morgan has condemned health secretary Matt Hancock after he said he intended to fight to keep his job amid the scandal surrounding him and his aide, Gina Colangelo.

The former Good Morning Britain presenter has been sharing his views on Twitter.

He reminded his followers that Mr Hancock said in May last year that epidemiologist Professor Neil Ferguson should resign from the government’s scientific advisory group, after it emerged he had broken lockdown rules when a woman he was reportedly in a relationship with visited his home.

“Remember: Matt Hancock was so disgusted about Neil Ferguson breaking social distancing rules with a lover, that he demanded he resign and said he’d back a police prosecution,” Morgan tweeted.

“Hancock’s stinking brazen hypocrisy is outrageous and pathetic, as is Boris Johnson’s refusal to sack him.”

At the time of writing, Morgan’s tweet had over 54,000 likes.

Mr Hancock admitted to breaking the government’s own guidance on social distancing on Thursday 24 June, after pictures of him embracing his aide were published in The Sun.

He said he had “let people down” and was “very sorry”. However, Downing Street said Boris Johnson accepted Mr Hancock’s apology and considered the matter closed.

However, disquiet is growing among both Labour and Tory MPs. Today (Saturday 26 June), Conservative MP for North Norfolk Duncan Baker told local paper the Eastern Daily Press that “people in high public office and great positions of responsibility should act with the appropriate morals and ethics that come with that role”.

“Standards and integrity matter to me,” he said. “I will not in any shape condone this behaviour and I have in the strongest possible terms told the government what I think.”