A friend and colleague of Matt Hancock has said his decision to join the line-up for I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! was made ‘last minute’.
The West Suffolk MP has defended his decision to appear on the ITV reality show in Australia, saying it is a ‘powerful tool’ to reach young people.
Yet Mr Hancock – who has arrived in Brisbane ahead of the show's launch on Sunday – has faced criticism over the decision and was yesterday suspended as a Conservative MP.
The independent MP’s colleague Isabel Oakeshott opened up about the behind the scenes decision-making process after Mr Hancock touched down in Brisbane ahead of the show launch this weekend.
Appearing on the Wednesday instalment of This Morning, host Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby quizzed Oakeshott, who worked with Mr Hancock on his book.
She said the decision was ‘very last minute’ but noted she did discuss it with Mr Hancock before it was made known to the public yesterday.
She said: “He did ask me what I thought and whether I thought it was a good idea. Obviously I presented the pros and cons.
“Before I knew it, he had disappeared off to Australia. So I think this was a pretty last minute decision. Although, he has said publicly he’s twice turned it down before.”
She continued: “I think Matt does feel that he wants people to see a different side of his personality.
“We’re used to seeing him day in and day out throughout the pandemic; he was the one in those Downing Street press conferences.”
In the studio Phillip then interjected to note the daily coronavirus press briefings were part of the ‘the job he was elected to do’ as opposed to going on reality TV.
However, she replied to say Mr Hancock is no longer leading the response to the pandemic, adding: “I’m not here to make the case for why this is all justified.”
She added: “I think people absolutely love the idea of him going into the jungle and suffering a bit and I think he knows that.
“He’s up for stuff. He does have a spirited, risk-taking side to his personality. I think he knows this is a finely balanced thing and it could backfire.
“Equally, he also knows he probably isn’t heading into the cabinet any time soon and he can bring a different message about politics to a much wider audience.”
