Matt Hancock could make a comeback in the Lords after being shunned by his constituents, it can be revealed.
The disgraced former health secretary said he was “excited to explore” a “whole new world of possibilities” when he announced he will step down as an MP.
But his spokesman has refused to rule out him becoming a peer.
The reality TV junkie confirmed on Wednesday he will not stand at the next election after local Tory bosses in his West Suffolk constituency decided he was “not fit” to represent him.
The former Cabinet minister’s allies claim he has “lots of irons in the fire ”, including hopes of a TV career as a documentary maker and a possible return to the world of business.
If he is elevated to the Lords, it would raise fresh questions about how peers are selected.
Mr Hancock came third on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! after heading half way around the world to Australia while Parliament was sitting.
During his five-week absence from the Commons, his team had insisted he had no intention of quitting politics.
But in a letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak earlier this week he said he had decided he would not run again as a candidate at the next election as he wants to "do things differently".
"I will play my part in the debate about the future of our country and engage with the public in new ways,” he wrote.
"I have discovered a whole new world of possibilities which I am excited to explore - new ways for me to communicate with people of all ages and from all backgrounds.”
Moments after he made his announcement, it emerged his local Tory association officers had concluded they had "no confidence" in him.
Terry Wood, president of West Suffolk Conservatives, wrote to party chiefs to demand that he was not allowed to stand again, arguing he was "not fit to represent this constituency".
Members of the House of Lords are not paid a salary but can claim a flat rate allowance of £332 for each sitting day they attend.
Mr Hancock, who was forced to resign as a minister after breaking his own Covid rules, has made a large sum of money by cashing in on his notoriety.
He is thought to have earned £400,000 for going into the jungle, has just published a tell-all memoir on his time in government, and is expected to get a big cheque for an exclusive deal with a national newspaper.
