Matt Hancock assaulted at Tube station in 'aggressive and unpleasant encounter'

25 January 2023 , 17:25

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Matt Hancock assaulted at Tube station in 'aggressive and unpleasant encounter'

A 61-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of assaulting Matt Hancock on the London Tube.

The alleged attack on the former Health Secretary happened yesterday morning at Westminster Underground station, close to the Houses of Parliament.

Footage of the incident appears to show show the backbench MP being harangued by a man who followed him through the barriers, down an escalator and onto the tube.

He repeatedly brands Mr Hancock a "murderer" and loudly describes Covid as a "fraud" in front of a carriage full of commuters between Westminster and Bond Street.

In a statement British Transport Police said officers were called to reports of a man being assaulted and harassed shortly before 9am.

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A man has been arrested on suspicion of assaulting Matt Hancock

Footage shows Mr Hancock being followed onto a train

A member of station staff is shown telling the man several times: "Please stop doing this."

A 10 minute video, filmed by the suspect, was shared on social media in the aftermath of the incident.

In a statement British Transport Police said: "We received a report of a man being assaulted and harassed at Westminster Underground station at 8.47am yesterday morning (January 24).

"A 61-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of common assault and a public order offence and remains in custody. Enquiries into the incident are ongoing."

The man appears to have put the video - in which he ask for the images 'to be shared far and wide' - into the public domain himself.

Mr Hancock is shown being harangued by a man on the London Underground

A spokesman for Mr Hancock said the MP had been subject of a "very aggressive and unpleasant encounter".

He added: "Matt wants to put on record his thanks to TFL and the British Transport Police for their extraordinary work."

Mr Hancock's spokesman said "this sort of behaviour is a rare occurrence" and stressed the "importance of shutting down baseless misinformation which causes so much harm".

Mr Hancock, 44, was a cabinet member when the pandemic struck and was a key figure in the lockdown restrictions and vaccine rollout that followed.

The clip shows Matt Hancock being followed through Westminster station and onto a train

Police said a 61-year-old man has been arrested

He resigned after leaked CCTV image showed him kissing an adviser in his office, in breach of his own social distancing guidance.

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Mr Hancock angered colleagues and constituents by jetting to the Australian jungle to appear on the reality show but won some sympathy from TV voters to come third.

Having been stripped of the Conservative whip over the appearance, he said he would not contest his seat at the next election when he will step down.

Dave Burke