Rishi Sunak has slapped down Matt Hancock for abandoning the Commons to appear on 'I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here' - and said he won't be watching.
The Prime Minister said he was "very disappointed" by his former Cabinet colleague's decision to jet to Australia to join the hit reality show, which began last night.
Mr Sunak refused to say if he had spoken to the ex-Health Secretary before he headed to Oz, and said he "genuinely won't have time" to watch him take part in Bushtucker trials.
The Tory party suspended the whip from Mr Hancock after the news broke of his jungle stint, which could see him spend up several weeks in Australia.
Mr Hancock is expected to be a late addition to the camp, which includes Boy George, Chris Moyles and footballer Jill Scott.
“I was very disappointed," the Prime Minister told The Sun as he travelled to the COP27 summit in Egypt.
MPs should be “working hard for their constituents”, adding: “I think his constituents have expressed their view.”
Mr Sunak, who snubbed the former Health Secretary for a Cabinet job, said: “I think politics is a noble profession, at its best — it can and should be.
"But it’s incumbent on politicians to earn people’s respect and trust.
“They do that by working hard for their constituents, as the vast majority of MPs do. That is why I was very disappointed with Matt’s decision.
“The vast majority of MPs are really hard-working — they got into it because they want to make a difference for their communities.
"Most MPs spend their time street by street, constituent by constituent, trying to make a difference, that’s what my colleagues do.
"That’s really special and why I was disappointed with what Matt did.”
Asked if he would be tuning in, the PM said: "I genuinely won't have the time is the honest answer."
Top Tory Grant Shapps admitted it would be "tempting" to watch Mr Hancock eat disgusting critters but said he won't be tuning in.
Asked if he was looking forward to seeing Mr Hancock having to eat crocodile anus, Mr Shapps told Sky News: "Tempting as that is, I think I'll probably be focusing on my job as Business Secretary, and I'll be off at Cop27 later this week as well, so I fear I might miss him depending on how long he survives."
He said he will not be voting for Mr Hancock on the reality show, adding: "I just think he should be here looking after his constituents, rather than in the jungle somewhere.
"So, no, I won't be. I won't be voting for him. I can't promise I'll be voting for anyone at all. So that might just be (by) omission rather than anything else."
A spokesperson for Matt Hancock said: "The second reading of Matt's Dyslexia Screening and Teacher Training Bill is just days after I'm A Celeb finishes. Matt doesn't expect to serve in government again so this is an amazing opportunity for him to raise the profile of his dyslexia campaign and to talk about an issue he really cares about in front of millions of people."
"Matt is still working on constituency matters and producers have agreed that Matt can communicate with his team throughout the show if there's an urgent constituency matter.
"Matt will be making a donation to St Nicholas Hospice in Suffolk, and causes supporting dyslexia, off the back of his appearance. He will, of course, declare the amount he receives from the show to Parliament to ensure complete transparency, as normal."
