Hancock’s half hour of tragicomedy has left boris more dominant than ever | thearticle

Boris Johnson may have lived by the pen, but he refuses to die by the pen. Or to let those who are loyal to him die at the hands of a media pile-on either. From the moment last week when

Hancock saw the CCTV images of himself in the arms of Gina Coladangelo, he must have known he was done for. Yet the Prime Minister stood by him. The matter was said to be “closed”, when the

jaws of ministerial Hell were gaping wide open. Even when the inevitable duly occurred, after a cordial conflab at Chequers, Hancock was permitted not just to publish the usual ingratiating

resignation letter but also to post an informal video on social media, thanking NHS staff. Downing Street released a letter so generous that anyone oblivious of the previous 24 hours might

have supposed that Hancock was merely taking a well-earned break from his Herculean labours during the pandemic. “You should be immensely proud of your service,” the PM wrote. “I am grateful

for your support and believe that your contribution to public service is far from over.” The message was clear: this resignation was entirely voluntary and accepted with reluctance. From

Boris to Matt, it was au revoir, not farewell. Neither of the letters nor the video actually mentioned Hancock’s affair. For reasons that are too obvious to mention, Boris Johnson has no

wish to go back to the days when the mere suggestion of sexual impropriety was enough to consign promising careers to the backbenches. Hancock’s crime, however, was not merely the hypocrisy

of imposing arbitrary prohibitions on sexual contact while secretly promoting his paramour. The British are a forgiving people, but they do not like ministers of the Crown to take the

mickey. Tory MPs reported outrage from their constituencies. To say that the public was unforgiving would be an understatement; their sympathy was saved for the two stricken families. In

Hancock’s own seat of West Sussex, party stalwarts are reported to find his conduct indefensible, although he has apparently retreated there to stave off the ultimate humiliation of

deselection. It is true that the guilty couple have both sacrificed a great deal for love. A classicist such as Boris might regard this nemesis as punishment for his colleague’s hubris, with

Dominic Cummings playing the part of the chorus. For the great British public, though, their affair was less Greek tragedy than Carry On at the Department of Health. Paradoxically,

Hancock’s half hour of tragicomedy has left Boris more dominant than ever. By this morning, Hancock was yesterday’s news and his successor, Sajid Javid, was already indicating a change of

tone, if not of policy. Like his successor at the Treasury, Javid is a whizz-kid in politics who will make the economy his priority. As members of the ministerial quad (along with Raab and

Gove), the Rishi-and-Saj axis will work to avoid any more bumps on the roadmap. This is what Boris Johnson wanted anyway. Westminster has already moved on, as the media focus shifts from

Tory sleaze to Labour splits. The Batley and Spen by-election looms on Thursday. The need to clear the decks for what promises to be a close-run contest in another Red Wall seat explains why

the Hancock affair had to be knocked off the front pages quickly. While the Cabinet remains united behind Boris, the Shadow Cabinet is anything but confident about Keir. The Labour leader’s

job is on the line this week and he knows it. If the party can hold on, Sir Keir will live to fight another day. If Labour loses badly in Batley, following the loss of a stronghold in

Hartlepool and a deposit in Chesham and Amersham, then Starmer faces a summer of speculation that may culminate in an assassination attempt at the party conference. He might even jump before

he is pushed — although friends say that he is no quitter. Politics is a rough old game, but when the chips are down it is always about loyalty. This Prime Minister is prepared to expend

capital defending ministers under fire such as Priti Patel, Gavin Williamson and Robert Jenrick, or to bring back those who stayed loyal such as Sajid Javid and perhaps even in due course

Matt Hancock. He knows that loyalty is the only currency that counts in the Commons — apart, of course, from the ability to make his own luck and above all to win. Boris has already proven

himself a lucky leader and a repeated winner; now he is determined to demonstrate that he is loyal to those who are loyal to him. Luck, loyalty and success: it’s a hard combination to beat —

and Sir Keir Starmer has none of the above. A MESSAGE FROM THEARTICLE _We are the only publication that’s committed to covering every angle. We have an important contribution to make, one

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