London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 24, 2025

Matt Hancock, Britain's beleaguered health secretary, resigns after being caught kissing aide

Matt Hancock, Britain's beleaguered health secretary, resigns after being caught kissing aide

Matt Hancock resigned as Britain's Health Secretary Saturday, one day after he apologized for breaching Covid regulations.

The married politician was pictured kissing and embracing his adviser, with whom British tabloid The Sun alleges he is having an affair. The newspaper reported that the images were from May 6, two weeks before cross-household contact was allowed indoors in England.

"I've been to see the Prime Minister to resign as Secretary of State for Health and Social care... Those of us who make these rules have got to stick by them, and that's why I've got to resign," Hancock said in a video posted on his Twitter page.

"I'm very proud of what we've done to protect the NHS at the peak, to deliver that vaccine rollout -- one of the fastest in the world -- and I look forward to supporting the government and the Prime Minister from the backbenches," he added.

In a letter to Boris Johnson, he apologized writing, "I want to reiterate my apology for breaking the guidance and apologise to my family and loved ones for putting them through this."

The Sun's report had sparked accusations of apparent cronyism -- an allegation that the health secretary has faced previously for awarding a contract to a former neighbor for Covid-19 test kits.

Hancock has been under pressure for months over his handling of the coronavirus pandemic in Britain, but had managed to cling onto his role.
Former Chancellor and Home Secretary Sajid Javid will replace Hancock, Downing Street announced.

Hancock was accused by Prime Minister Boris Johnson's former chief adviser Dominic Cummings of botching the country's coronavirus testing program, as well as lying about the dire situation in care homes and the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE). Hancock has denied the claims.

To date, more than 128,000 people have died in the United Kingdom from Covid-19 -- the highest death toll in Europe. One of the biggest early failures of the UK's response to Covid-19 was in building a test-and-trace system. The British government has also been criticized for neglecting care homes, allowing many facilities to go without sufficient PPE, testing and clear guidelines.

Cummings delivered a damning account of the government's coronavirus response in a marathon seven-hour hearing before members of parliament in Westminster last month, accusing Downing Street and Hancock of misleading the British public.

The divisive figure, who quit his post last November amid the UK's deadly second wave of the pandemic, doubled down on his criticisms of Hancock last week.

"As the PM said himself, Hancock's performance on testing, procurement, PPE [personal protective equipment], care homes etc was 'totally f**king hopeless,'" Cummings said in a tweet, sharing a screenshot of what appears to be a WhatsApp exchange with Johnson just days after the UK went into its first full lockdown amid a worsening outbreak.

On March 27, 2020, the same day that Johnson and Hancock both tested positive for the coronavirus, Cummings said he texted the prime minister to tell him the pace of coronavirus testing was too slow and that the health minister had misled government about his ability to speed it up.

According to the screenshot shared on Cummings' blog and on Twitter, Johnson responded: "Totally f**king hopeless."

In another text message a month later, on April 27, when National Health Service staff were running out of critical masks and gowns, Johnson said the PPE shortages were "a disaster," and suggested taking Hancock off procurement of the equipment entirely.

"Wtf do we do?" Johnson wrote.

Asked last week by Sky News whether he was indeed hopeless, Hancock said: "I don't think so." Johnson has not commented on the WhatsApp messages, and his official spokesman said the Prime Minister does not plan to engage with every allegation that is made.

The chaos around Hancock had already reached such a scale that it even drew the attention of the Queen.

The Queen alluded to the health secretary's woes on Wednesday in her first in-person audience with the prime minister in 15 months, informing Johnson that she had been speaking to "your secretary of state for health, poor man."

It is unclear whether the comment was a reaction to the heavy burden of managing the country's coronavirus response, or an acknowledgment of the criticism Hancock has received from Cummings.

"I've just been talking to your secretary of state for health, poor man. He came for privy council. He's full of ..."

"Beans," Johnson quipped.

"He thinks that things are getting better," the Queen said, to which Johnson replied: "Well, er, they are, in the sense that we're ..." before the video abruptly ends.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
×