Matt Hancock was skewered for refusing to engage with "difficult questions" on Tory sleaze - after he blanked a series of questions on the mounting allegations against his party.
At a Downing Street briefing, the Health Secretary was asked whether a minister should resign if they were found to have broken the rules or the law on party funding.
It comes as Boris Johnson faces three inquiries into who originally funded the refurbishment of his private Downing Street flat.
The PM has insisted he’s covered the cost of the makeover in full, but has repeatedly refused to say who initially paid - and whether loans from Tory donors were used to foot the bill.
Mr Hancock refused to answer questions on the deepening scandal.
He said: "I know the Prime Minister answered lots of questions about this in the House of Commons earlier.
"And given that this is a Coronavirus press conference I'm not going to add to the answers the Prime Minister has given to already extensive questioning."
He also refused to answer a question about remarks made by Conservative Party chair Amanda Milling that the Electoral Commission should be abolished.
This morning, the Electoral Commission launched an investigation into the affair, saying there was "reasonable grounds" to suspect an offence may have occurred.
Asked about Ms Milling's comments, Mr Hancock said: "I think we'll give that last question a miss."
Later, the Mirror's Ben Glaze asked: "As culture secretary you championed the right of the free press and the fourth estate to ask difficult questions, yet this evening you've refused to engage with questions from Chris (Smyth, The Times) or from Laura (Kuennsberg, BBC) around Tory sleaze.
"What's the point of us being able to ask difficult questions if you're not going to engage with them?"
Mr Hancock said: "The point of the press conference is the incredibly important progress on coronavirus, which is without doubt the most important thing facing the country."
He said there had been "endless" questions in the House of Commons earlier on the subject.
And added: "You've also got to concentrate on the big things that really matter."
While the press conference was billed as a Covid-19 update, it's not unusual for ministers - including the PM - to be asked and answer questions on other topics of the day.
Indeed, last month Boris Johnson came under fire for using his national television platform to mount a party political attack on London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
Earlier, the Prime Minister repeatedly refused to say who had initially paid for the refurbishment of his Downing Street flat - only saying that he had “covered the cost”.
Questions have been mounting since former aide Dominic Cummings accused Mr Johnson of wanting donors to "secretly pay" for the renovations to his No 11 residence in a "possibly illegal" move.
