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Matt Hancock Tries to Torpedo the Lockdown Files Live – But the Show Will Go On

by Toby Young
15 May 2023 7:00 AM

The Lockdown Files Live, an event at which I’m going to be talking to Isabel Oakeshott about Matt Hancock’s WhatsApp messages that she handed over to the Telegraph, was almost derailed last week when the Emmanuel Centre informed us it could no longer host it. The reason? It had been contacted by Hancock’s people, who said it would be illegal for Isabel and I to “profit” from stolen property. In fact, the WhatsApp messages weren’t stolen – Hancock happily shared them with Isabel – but the Emmanuel Centre didn’t want the aggravation so it pulled the plug. Happily, we’ve managed to find another venue – the Hippodrome – where the event will take place on Tuesday, June 13th. (You can buy a ticket here.) And if you’re one of the people who’s bought a ticket to the drinks reception or the VIP dinner with Isabel and me on Saturday, June 10th – don’t worry. For those people the event will take place on Saturday as planned, only the drinks, the discussion and the dinner will all be at UnHerd’s swanky new headquarters on Old Queen Street rather than the Emmanuel Centre.

Isabel Oakeshott has written about this turn of events in the Telegraph. Here’s an extract:

That the former health secretary could see fit to adopt the moral high ground when it comes to money making of any description is a fresh reminder of his brass neck. This is, after all, a man who summarily dumped his constituents in West Suffolk to prance around the Australian jungle getting ants in his pants and eating camel bits. He told everyone his stint on ITV’s I’m a Celebrity show was all about raising awareness of dyslexia, but few were convinced. It turns out he pocketed £320,000 from his appearance – of which he donated just £10,000 to charity.

As if that was not enough to disqualify him from lecturing anyone about making money, he recently told an undercover reporter that his going rate for providing business advice is £10,000 a day, or “around £1,500 an hour”. Nice work if you can get it! Sadly, the South Korean company he thought he could assist turned out to be fake.

As for the stolen thing? Within a few hours of the Telegraph breaking the Lockdown Files exposé, even he dropped that ridiculous claim. To his regret, he freely shared his WhatsApps with quite a few people, including me.

Worth reading in full.

Tags: Isabel OakeshottLockdown FilesMatt HancockThe Hippodrome

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32 Comments
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Grahamb
Grahamb
2 years ago

Mr Hancock has some expensive overheads with these people acting for him. Hopefully, the crowd funded court case progresses and he is soon separated from that appearance fee

161
0
RTSC
RTSC
2 years ago

Toby/Isabel: Nice additional (free) publicity for our expose: thanks Matt.

95
0
Shimpling Chadacre
Shimpling Chadacre
2 years ago

Johnson should forever have a cloud of shame hanging over him for putting Hancock, the Dunning-Kruger poster-boy, in charge of Health during the Covid pantomime. It should go without saying of course that none of these people have the capacity for shame as that would require a conscience.

189
0
Smudger
Smudger
2 years ago
Reply to  Shimpling Chadacre

Bunter doesn’t do shame. It’s all a game to him. Winner takes all!
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/boris-johnson-paid-3-800-000-for-mansion-that-has-moat-to-keep-people-out/ar-AA1baOZx?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=11c060e5b574488fb066ed7952ba4c81&ei=44#image=1

3
0
James.M
James.M
2 years ago

Couldn’t happen to a nicer chap.

82
0
disgruntled246
disgruntled246
2 years ago

Bit disappointing that the Emmanuel Centre are such wimps though.

131
0
Dr G
Dr G
2 years ago

Excuse me for my antipodeant ignorance, but do people actually vote for this apparent narcissistic buffoon?
Or is there a way for certain British citizens to become senior ministers without having to go through the tedium of winning elections?

75
0
JohnK
JohnK
2 years ago
Reply to  Dr G

They voted for the Party; nothing more than that.

It’s probably more important for most people to be sceptical about the role of Ministers, compared with that of the Permanent Secretaries etc.

39
0
transmissionofflame
transmissionofflame
2 years ago
Reply to  Dr G

I think it’s possible for members of the House of Lords, who are not elected, to be cabinet (senior) level ministers, but it’s unusual.

As JohnK points out, people vote for the party. If an MP has been extremely distinguished or the opposite in the eyes of their constituents, they may out or under perform their party by some margin, but most are simply subject to the fortunes of their parties. There are swing voters but many only ever vote for one party their whole lives. Hancock is MP for a place that would normally elect Tories. Millions of Labour and Tory voters continue to vote for their respective parties without (or perhaps in spite of) noticing that those parties no longer represent people like them or their interests.

50
0
jsampson45
jsampson45
2 years ago
Reply to  transmissionofflame

Perhaps the voters look at the alternatives available.

10
0
transmissionofflame
transmissionofflame
2 years ago
Reply to  jsampson45

I used to vote for the “least bad” choice available but I think if that choice is still appallingly bad then one should either spoil the ballot paper or not vote at all

44
0
Shimpling Chadacre
Shimpling Chadacre
2 years ago
Reply to  transmissionofflame

I ended up writing LIAR against every name on my ballot.

Conservative – Liar – what have the “conservatives” ever conserved?

Labour – Liar – stopped representing working natives decades ago

LibDem – Liar – campaigned on overturning the biggest democratic decision of the people in decades

They are all LIARS. That is all they do.

49
0
Hugh
Hugh
2 years ago
Reply to  Shimpling Chadacre

And presumably the Green Party. What did they do about face masks (and contraceptives) polluting the environment?

26
0
7941MHKB
7941MHKB
2 years ago
Reply to  Hugh

GangGreen, of course, are watermelons.
Shiny green on the outside, deep red inside the skin, and containing many hard pips.
Liars to shame even all the others.

8
0
Hugh
Hugh
2 years ago
Reply to  transmissionofflame

Or indeed stand oneself, especially in local elections where no deposit is required.

12
0
stewart
stewart
2 years ago

Characters like Hancock are the people in authority who lord over the population making rules, spending money they confiscate from us and then some more.

They are useless, cretinous, morally vacuous individuals. And yet we are so primed to not only accept authority and leadership but beg for it. So we live in the constant hope that the people that replace the likes of Hancock might be somehow a bit better.

They’re all the same, with few exceptions.

If we don’t want these sociopaths constantly affecting our lives, the state needs to be shrunk and its authority and power drastically reduced.

94
0
nige.oldfart
nige.oldfart
2 years ago
Reply to  stewart

I think it was Plato who said something like; some criminals we hang, others we elect to government.

53
0
transmissionofflame
transmissionofflame
2 years ago
Reply to  nige.oldfart

Possibly, though when I read “The Republic” it seemed mainly like a long-winded explanation of why wise people like Plato should be in charge of everything.

15
0
Boomer Bloke
Boomer Bloke
2 years ago

Another candidate for a short sharp shock.

26
0
godknowsimgood
godknowsimgood
2 years ago

If anyone wants to help Andrew Bridgen successfully sue Matt Hancock, you can donate here, every little helps:

https://democracythree.org/en-gb/en-gb/the_day_democracy_died_andrew_bridgen?fbclid=IwAR3a9tWFC81JrNn6B1xx6e10OSu31Cc-RXbbPC-f4XU40Gr3JC8lAqf7VOo

51
0
VAX FREE IanC
VAX FREE IanC
2 years ago
Reply to  godknowsimgood

Before you do that you might want to have a read of this.
A Bridgen Too Far… – Miri AF
https://miriaf.co.uk/a-bridgen-too-far/

3
0
Epi
Epi
2 years ago
Reply to  VAX FREE IanC

Too late mate already donated as you can see from my comments above. Just have to pray hard and hope you’re wrong about the success (or otherwise) of AB’s lawsuit. It’s only money!

2
0
VAX FREE IanC
VAX FREE IanC
2 years ago
Reply to  Epi

Me too, and it’s not my thoughts necessarily, just drawing attention to another point of view that makes quite a lot of sense. I didn’t see this feature until after donating, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t have donated.

4
0
Epi
Epi
2 years ago
Reply to  godknowsimgood

Already done. Not showing off but I actually donated twice as I forgot to put a good luck message on first time. Sorry Andrew but you only got a fiver the second time round! As for Hand Cock may he rot in hell.

8
0
D Jenner
D Jenner
2 years ago

Tickets on Eventbrite for the reception & dinner say 10th June (not 20th).

6
0
JXB
JXB
2 years ago

‘…  he recently told an undercover reporter that his going rate for providing business advice is £10,000 a day, or “around £1,500 an hour”.’

Anyone dumb enough to take business advice from this shameless nitwit, even gratis, deserves to go bankrupt and probably would.

47
0
RW
RW
2 years ago

A ‘democratic’ politcian referring to recorded communication of him that’s political in nature and when there’s clearly a public interest in it becoming known (as in 13 months of When do we deploy the new variant?) is certainly gross. The people running the Emasculated Centre ought to be ashamed of themselves.

21
0
transmissionofflame
transmissionofflame
2 years ago
Reply to  RW

Absolutely. The material concerns government business that we were paying him to conduct hence it should be our property.

19
0
Hugh
Hugh
2 years ago

So that former health secretary has robbed ticket holders unable to switch to Tuesday of what they have paid for. And by the way, would it be going too far to suggest that that man should be in jail ?

25
0
Epi
Epi
2 years ago
Reply to  Hugh

“And by the way, would it be going too far to suggest that that man should be in jail ?”

At the very least. He’s the equivalent of a war criminal.

11
0
7941MHKB
7941MHKB
2 years ago
Reply to  Epi

Or more precisely, equivalent to all those amongst the prison population, that the majority of the taxpayers would greatly prefer to be hanged. Piano wire and a lamp-post would reduce costs.

3
0
Peter W
Peter W
2 years ago

Who on earth would want any advice from Hancock even at £10 let alone £10,000

9
0

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