Matt Hancock - live: I'm A Celebrity deal 'benefits from Covid misery', mourner says

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Matt Hancock insisted he "hasn't lost his mind" as he heads to Australia to join I'm A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! amid widespread criticism.

The MP for West Suffolk claimed his 'first priority' was his constituents as he traveled over 10 000 miles to join the ITV show, which starts on Sunday.

< p>The former health secretary, who was suspended from the party, defended his decision in an article in The Sun, saying he was on the show so he could "go where the people are - not to sit in ivory towers in Westminster".

Meanwhile, l Tory backbencher Tim Loughton has branded him an 'absolute moron' as Mr Hancock questions whether he broke the rules on applying for clearance for jobs taken within two years of leaving. /p>

Earlier, the parliamentarians of the Opposition launched a dig at the Prime Minister with SNP MP Pete Wishart saying: 'It says a lot that Matt Hancock would rather be stuck in a secluded jungle eating kangaroo testicles than spend one more moment on the Conservative benches in Westminster, as Rishi Sunak's government teeters from crisis to crisis."