Matt Hancock has admitted to breaking social distancing guidelines after photos of him kissing an assistant.
Questions about the health secretary The hiring of former lobbyist Gina Coladangelo surfaced after images from The Sun newspaper showed Mr Hancock, who is married, kissing the assistant in his office.
“I accept that I violated social distancing guidelines under these circumstances,” he said.
“I let people down and I’m so sorry.”
According to the newspaper, the images, which appear to come from CCTV footage, were taken on May 6 from the building of the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs.
At the time the photo was reportedly taken, hugging anyone outside of your home or bubble was prohibited.
The government’s COVID restrictions roadmap said people should keep their distance from anyone outside of their homes or the support bubble until May 17.
Labor and Liberal Democrats called on Boris Johnson to sack the Health Secretary, but Mr Hancock made it clear in his statement that he wished to continue.
“I remain focused on working to get the country out of this pandemic and I would be grateful for my family’s confidentiality on this personal matter,” he said.
Matt Hancock and Gina Coladangelo in 2019
Mr Hancock’s statement comes after he failed to show up at a riding event scheduled for Friday morning at Newmarket Racecourse.
The Sunday Times reported in November that Mr Hancock did not say he appointed Ms Coladangelo as an unpaid advisor on a six-month contract last March and then gave her a role on the board of administration of the Ministry of Health.
Ms Coladangelo, who appears on the ministry’s website as a non-executive director, is the director of marketing and communications for UK retailer Oliver Bonas, founded by her husband Oliver Tress.
Her LinkedIn profile indicates that she has been working as a non-executive director of the department for …
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Source: news.sky.com
This notice was published: 2021-06-25 11:20:00
