UK Covid Inquiry Live: Former Health Secretary Matt Hancock gives evidence to Covid Inquiry

Former Health Secretary Matt Hancock is to answer questions from Britain’s Covid inquiry today.

The former Conservative MP for West Suffolk has been criticized for his decision-making during the pandemic.

In his previous appearances at the inquiry he said he was “deeply sorry” for every Covid-related death – and admitted an earlier first lockdown would have saved many lives.

Hancock’s career at Commons was marred by controversy.

His tenure as Health Secretary is no exception: he resigned from the post in June 2021 after breaking social distancing guidelines by kissing a colleague.

A year later, he appeared on screens as a contestant on ITV reality show I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! – for which he had the Tory whip removed – and Channel 4’s Celebrity SAS.

He would later work alongside journalist Isabel Oakeshott on her book Pandemic Diaries.

However, he accused Oakeshott of “massive betrayal and breach of trust” after posting 100,000 WhatsApp messages relating to his time as health secretary to the Telegraph newspaper.