Former health secretary Matt Hancock confirmed on Tuesday he is heading Down Under for the latest series of ITV’s I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!, as he becomes the latest in a long line of celebrities and public figures to try their hand at reality television. Mr Hancock, 44 - who was health secretary throughout the Covid-19 pandemic until he was forced to resign - has been criticised for his decision to enter the jungle at a time when the country is grappling with a cost-of-living crisis.
On Tuesday, it was confirmed he had been suspended from the Conservative Party following the announcement, with campaign group Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice calling his decision “sickening”. Tory MP Tim Loughton called Mr Hancock an “absolute prat” for his decision to enter the jungle, as reported by the BBC, slamming him for a “serious error of judgement.”
Writing in The Sun, Mr Hancock defended his decision to take part in I’m a Celeb, saying politicians must “go where the people are” and said the show is a “powerful tool” to reach young people. He insisted: “I have not lost my marbles or had one too many pina coladas”.
