London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 23, 2025

Matt Hancock in talks over Covid book deal

Matt Hancock in talks over Covid book deal

Victims’ families accuse former health secretary of cashing in on the tragedy with insider account

Matt Hancock has been “approached” about writing a book about his experience as health secretary during the coronavirus pandemic, his spokesperson has confirmed, provoking anger from campaigners and the Labour party.

The former minister, who stepped down in June after it was revealed he had broken Covid restrictions, had been contacted but no deal had been made, his spokesperson said.

Reports that Hancock was considering a lucrative book deal ahead of next year’s inquiry drew harsh condemnation from the opposition. Labour’s deputy leader, Angela Rayner, said the former health secretary was attempting to “put his spin on the government’s failures”.

She tweeted: “This is disgusting and an insult to each and every bereaved family. Boris Johnson needs to step in and block Matt Hancock from getting a bumper payday to put his spin on the government’s failures before we get the truth in a public inquiry.”

In a separate statement, a Labour spokesperson said: “The Cabinet Office should block the publication of this tasteless cashing in on tragedy.”

The Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK group also condemned Hancock as trying to cash in on the pandemic, which has resulted in more than 142,000 deaths in the UK, according to government figures.

“The fact that Matt Hancock thinks it’s appropriate for bereaved families to have to listen to his spin on their loved ones’ deaths, before the truth has come out via the inquiry, says it all about the attitude of the man who oversaw the worst UK public health failure ever,” the group, which has led the calls for an inquiry into the government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, wrote on Twitter.


The inquiry is likely to examine whether the government was quick enough to apply restrictions to protect the public from the virus and look at whether care homes were properly protected.

Hancock spoke about throwing a “protective ring” around care homes during the early stages of the pandemic in England but the country went on to record tens of thousands of care home deaths.

The Daily Mail first reported that the former minister was in talks with HarperCollins about writing an insider account of the government’s pandemic response, claiming the publisher could hand him an advance of £100,000.

Hancock confirmed reports that he had been approached, telling the newspaper that “no decisions have been made”.

His spokesperson similarly underlined on Saturday that, while an approach had been made, no deal had been signed: “Matt has been approached to write a book about his experiences in the pandemic, but no decisions have been made. There is no deal.”

And publisher HarperCollins said on Saturday evening it was not in talks with Hancock and had “no knowledge” of any book about his pandemic experience. “We have no knowledge of such a book and are not in talks,” it said in a tweet.

The Daily Mail reported that Hancock was “set to write a ‘How I Won the Covid War’ book on his ‘heroic’ role in the UK vaccine campaign”.

But responding to the claim, Hancock’s spokesperson said: “The people who were heroic during the pandemic were the NHS staff who worked round the clock to save lives.”

While the official government figures on Friday put the UK’s death toll at 142,678, separate statistics show that there have been 165,534 deaths where Covid is mentioned on the death certificate.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
×