Matt Hancock, Britain’s former health minister who was suspended by the Conservatives for appearing on a reality TV show, said on Wednesday he would step down as an MP.
He is the latest member of Rishi Sunak’s beleaguered ruling Tories to announce he will not stand for election with the party at the next election.
Hancock, who was sacked as health minister during the pandemic after he was caught flouting social distancing rules with a colleague he was having an affair with, said in Australia “I’m a Celebrity… Many were angered by her flying in to appear in “Get Me Out of Here”. ,
He reached the final of the show for being stung by a scorpion, sprayed with mud and lying in a pit of spiders and cockroaches, but was suspended from the Tory parliamentary party.
In a letter to Sunak, Hancock wrote: “It has been an honor to serve in Parliament and represent the people of West Suffolk.
“I will play my part in the debate about the future of our country and engage with the public in new ways.”
He also said that the party was about to reinstate him as Tory MP, “but that is not necessary now”.
The 44-year-old drew criticism from party colleagues after missing Parliament to attend the show.
More than a dozen Tory MPs, including former finance minister Sajid Javid, have said they will not contest their seats at the next election – before January 2025 at the latest.
Former leaders Boris Johnson, Theresa May and Liz Truss, however, want to take aim at him.
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