Boris Johnson has been accused of “rewriting history” after trying to claim credit for Matt Hancock’s resignation.
Labour said the Prime Minister "did not have the guts to sack Matt Hancock” when Johnson appeared to suggest he had taken decisive action after pictures emerged of the Health Secretary in clinch with aide Gina Coladangelo in his Whitehall Office.
On Friday, as the scandal broke, the Prime Minister said he regarded "the matter closed" after Hancock apologised for breaching rules.
Hancock was forced to resign on Saturday in the face of overwhelming criticism and no support from cabinet colleagues.
But in his first on-camera comments on the scandal, Johnson suggested he had acted over Hancock 's behaviour because it undermined the Government’s message that the nation has been in the pandemic together.
“That’s right,” Johnson told broadcasters. “And that’s why, when I saw the story on Friday, we had a new Secretary of State for Health in on Saturday.”
Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner accused Johnson of trying to take credit for the resignation and said “serious unanswered questions” remain.
Rayner said: “Boris Johnson is trying to rewrite history because he didn’t have the guts to sack Matt Hancock,”
“A fish rots from the head down, and by failing to sack the former health secretary, Johnson proved he doesn’t have the leadership qualities or judgment required to be Prime Minister.”
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman was tied in knots trying to square Johnson's comments with the facts.
When the official was asked if Johnson sacked Hancock, the spokesman said: “No, the former health secretary resigned.”
And asked if Johnson urged Hancock to resign, the spokesman said: “No, the Prime Minister accepted his resignation, he agreed it was the right decision.”
The spokesman declined to explain what changed between Friday - when a No 10 said Johnson accepted Hancock’s apology and “considers the matter closed” – and Saturday, when he accepted his resignation.
“All I can say is they discussed it further and the Prime Minister agreed with the former health secretary that it was right for him to offer his resignation,” the official spokesman said.
Meanwhile, Downing Street suggested Hancock personally hired Gina Coladangelo, the aide he was caught intimately embracing on leaked CCTV, as a non-executive director at the UK Health department.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “As far as I’m aware I believe ministers are entitled to make direct appointments and I believe that was the case in this instance.
“Her appointment followed correct procedure.”
The long-term friend of Hancock was brought into the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) first as an unpaid adviser before getting the £15,000-a-year director role in September.
Labour said Hancock may have resigned but the matter is far from closed and called on the government must publish all documents relating to the appointment of Coladangelo.
