Matt Hancock has resigned as health secretary after incriminating photos showing him kissing Gina Coladangelo, a colleague and longtime friend, emerged. The images, released by The Sun, mean that not only was Hancock having an affair, the health Secretary was also breaching social distancing guidelines.
In a letter to the UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, he said the government “owe it to people who have sacrificed so much in this pandemic to be honest when we have let them down”.-Advertisement-
Hancock had been under increasing pressure to quit after The Sun published pictures of the health official and Coladangelo sharing an intimate moment.
The newspaper had reported that the photos had been taken inside the Department of Health.
In a video posted on Twitter, Hancock announced his resignation, apologising for breaking the guidelines.
“I have been to see the prime minister to resign as secretary of state for health and social care. I understand the enormous sacrifices that everybody in this country has made, that you have made, and those of us who make these rules have got to stick by them, and that’s why I have got to resign,” he said.
Earlier, concerns had been raised about the selection process which saw Coladangelo appointed as a non-executive director of the Department of Health.
Coladangelo was a friend of the health secretary since they worked on a student radio station at Oxford University. She was in September appointed to the role which comes with a £15,000 salary and involves 15 to 20 days of work per year.
