By Ben Kerrigan-
Former Health Secretary Matt Hancock has announced he will not be standing as an MP at the next general election after being suspended as a Conservative MP after taking part in the ITV reality show I’m A Celebrity.
In a letter to Rishi Sunak, Mr Hancock said he had “discovered a whole new world of possibilities which I am excited to explore”.
He added that politicians need to find “new ways to reach people” outside Parliament.
He concluded his letter by saying it had been “an honour to serve in Parliament and represent the people of West Suffolk”.
“I will play my part in the debate about the future of our country and engage with the public in new ways,” he said.
Mr Hancock was stripped of the Conservative whip after it emerged he was joining the reality TV show, prompting speculation about his political future and whether he would stand again at the next general election which must take place before January 2025.
The former health secretary is currently sitting as an independent MP in the House of Commons.
Mr Hancock had been a minister in successive Conservative governments since 2013 and served as health secretary during the coronavirus pandemic.
In June 2021, he was forced to resign from the role after he breached social distancing guidelines by kissing colleague, Gina Coladangelo, who later became his partner.
Despite supporting Mr Sunak in the Conservative leadership campaign, Mr Hancock wasn’t given a role in government when the prime minister entered Downing Street.
The MP subsequently joined the cast of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here – a decision that attracted criticism from his fellow MPs and local Conservative association.
Hancock was first elected as an MP in 2010, served as culture secretary before becoming health secretary under Theresa May, keeping the job with Boris Johnson and throughout the bulk of the Covid pandemic.
He resigned in June last year after footage emerged of him kissing a friend and work colleague, Gina Coladangelo, in his ministerial office, a breach of his own Covid-19 rules.
Mr Hancock defended his decision to participatein the reality TV was a “powerful tool” to reach young people.
Announcing his decision to quit Parliament, Mr Hancock said: “There was a time when I thought the only way to influence the public debate was in Parliament, but I’ve realised there’s far more to it than that.
As health secretary, Mr Hancock led the UK’s response to the Covid pandemic
“I have increasingly come to believe that for a healthy democracy we must find new ways of reaching people – especially those who are disengaged with politics.
“The revival of modern conservatism over the next decade will I suspect take place as much outside Parliament as in it.”
He said he looked “forward to championing the issues that are dear to my heart, including better support for dyslexia children”.
In his letter, he also said the chief whip had told him he would be re-admitted into the Conservative parliamentary party “in due course”, but Mr Hancock said “that is now not necessary”.
Mr Hancock is the latest in a string of MPs who have announced their decision not to stand in the next election, which has to take place before January 2025.
Last week Sajid Javid – another former health secretary – said he would be leaving Parliament.
Other Conservatives quitting include Levelling Up Minister Dehenna Davison and backbenchers William Wragg and Chloe Smith.
The West Suffolk constituency, which Mr Hancock has represented since 2010, currently has a large Conservative majority of over 23,000