‘He keeps coming back for more’: Matt Hancock’s rapid return to the fray

Some see his re-emergence as a kind of penance, others as a story of redemption. Could he return to government?

Considering how many parties they are alleged to have held, Boris Johnson and his government have recently seemed to be very short of friends.

A national shortage of Downing Street defenders reached its nadir on 8 December, the morning after a video emerged of No 10 staff laughing and joking about “cheese and wine” at a “business meeting”. Even Sajid Javid, the health secretary, pulled out of a morning media round.

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