Matt Hancock resigned as Health Secretary at the weekend, but there are still questions swirling around the scandal. Here are the main ones that need answering.
Did Matt Hancock break email rules?
One of the claims against Hancock was that he had been using a private email account to conduct government business. This is bad for two reasons: firstly, it makes it harder to enforce freedom of information and data protection rules, which are vital for scrutinising whether the government has been acting appropriately. Secondly, it is a potential security risk and potentially leaves the door open to hackers and foreign intelligence services monitoring government communications. Labour is calling for a “full-scale investigation” into the allegations.
Have other ministers potentially been avoiding scrutiny by using private emails?
The opposition also wants to know how widespread this alleged practice is. Boris Johnson himself was asked whether he had used his personal email on Monday: he refused to comment. The issue could potentially be wider than just Hancock.
Was Gina Coladangelo’s appointment above board?
Hancock’s aide Gina Coladangelo, a former lobbyist, has been friends with the former health secretary since Oxford University. In September she was appointed as a non-executive director at the Department of Health and Social Care, where her job was to hold Hancock to account. It is not yet when the the pair’s relationship began; Justice Secretary Robert Buckland has said that “if there was any connection or conflict” when she was appointed then “it should have been declared”. A government spokesman has said the appointment was “made in the usual way” and “followed correct procedure”.
Why did Coladangelo get a parliamentary pass?
The aide was given a parliamentary security pass, which was sponsored last year by junior health minister Lord Bethell, according to a report in The Times newspaper. The aide has reportedly never worked for the peer. The House of Lords Commission says that “The rules on the use of facilities state that passes for secretaries and research assistants may be issued only to people who ‘genuinely and personally provide Parliamentary secretarial or research assistance’ to the sponsoring Member, and Members must sign a declaration to this effect when applying for such a pass. A breach of this rule is a breach of the Code of Conduct and can be investigated by the Commissioner for Standards.”
How was the CCTV footage of the pair leaked?
It is not clear how the footage, believed to be from a CCTV camera in Hancock’s office was leaked to The Sun newspaper. Theories that the camera was not meant to be there and had been planted or of another origin appear not to have been borne out: Hancock’s replacement Sajid David said on Monday it has since been “disabled by the department”.
