Thousands of people have signed a petition calling for former Health Secretary Matt Hancock to be axed from this year’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!.
It was announced yesterday that the disgraced politician would be entering the jungle as a surprise campmate in this year’s series, which is set to air this Sunday (November 6th).
However, news of Hancock’s participation on the reality show has sparked an overwhelming wave of backlash by those who are cynical of his policies and actions during the 2020 lockdowns.
He was even suspended as Tory MP yesterday, with Chief Whip Simon Hart MP saying Hancock’s decision to take part in the show was ‘serious enough to warrant suspension of the whip with immediate effect’.
And now, a petition calling for him to be removed from the show has surpassed 20,000 signatures.
The 38 Degrees petition, which has 20,275 signatures at the time of writing, states: “Matt Hancock isn’t a ‘celebrity’, he’s the health secretary who oversaw the UK having one of the highest death tolls in the world from Covid-19 whilst breaking his own lockdown rules.
“The fact that he is trying to cash in on his terrible legacy, rather than showing some humility or seeking to reflect on the appalling consequences of his time in Government says it all about the sort of his person he is.
“Families were ripped apart by Matt Hancock’s actions, and turning on the TV to see him being paraded around as a joke is sickening.”
It added: “If he had any respect for families who lost loved ones to Covid-19, he would be sharing his private emails with the Covid Inquiry, not eating bugs on TV.
“Matt Hancock was at the very centre of decisions such as locking down late, allowing large scale sporting events to go ahead as the virus ran rampant and failed to get our healthcare workers the PPE they needed.
“On top of that he was fired after breaking the rules he helped set. His profiteering and shameless search for publicity in the run up to his book launch is another insult to already grieving families.”
To read more about the petition and to sign it yourself, click here.