THE UK POLITICAL establishment has been reeling in the past few days with the steady drip feed of Matt Hancock’s WhatsApp messages.

Daily press headlines generated from the thousands of the former UK health secretary’s messages released by Isabel Oakeshott show no signs of slowing down.

Hancock, who presided over the country’s pandemic response but has since made an appearance on I’m a Celebrity, had been collaborating with the journalist on a memoir of his time in government during the pandemic.

He’s called her release to the Daily Telegraph a “massive betrayal”, while she is insisting it’s done in the public interest. 

The controversial messages have stirred up national debate around the Conservative government’s handling of Covid and have raised questions about Hancock’s own attitude to such a role during a pandemic.

This week on The Explainer, we were joined by PA Media political correspondent Dominic McGrath, who’s based in London. He spoke to Laura Byrne about Matt Hancock, a divisive political and public figure. 

https://soundcloud.com/the-explainer-podcast/why-does-matt-hancock-keep-making-headlines

This episode was put together by presenter Laura Byrne, producers Aoife Barry and Nicky Ryan and executive producer Sinéad O’Carroll.