The government has to be careful when it comes to public confidence

Between the resignation of Matt Hancock and an incident over some classified MoD documents, it has not been a good few days, writes Chris Stevenson

Boris Johnson and Matt Hancock (PA)

It has not been the greatest few days for the government when it comes to confidence in the eyes of the public.

First, there were the pictures of Matt Hancock kissing Gina Coladangelo in his office, a breach of the Covid-19 rules for which he issued an apology without initially stepping down from his role as health secretary. Hancock was backed by Boris Johnson, with Downing Street saying it considered “the matter closed” before pressure continued to build and Hancock resigned on Saturday.

In a snap YouGov poll before he stepped down, 49 per cent of respondents said Hancock needed to resign, with 25 per cent saying he should stay in his post. There is some debate in our letters page about the treatment of Hancock – and Johnson’s stance on the incident – and I expect that to continue, even if Sajid Javid has been appointed to take over Hancock’s job in the cabinet.

Certainly, readers have been asking questions about Hancock – and his role in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic – for some time, many agreeing with the assessment in a text message from Johnson that called him “hopeless”.

Second is the news that classified Ministry of Defence (MoD) documents containing details about HMS Defender and the British military were found at a bus stop in Kent. The documents were reported lost last week, according to the MoD. They were discovered early on Tuesday morning by a member of the public, the BBC reported.

The documents are said to detail possible Russian reaction to Defender's passage through waters off the coast of Crimea – a move that sparked a diplomatic spat with Moscow. The MoD has launched an investigation into the discovery of the documents.

As we approach the end of lockdown, the government needs to be sure that it has the public on board – it can ill afford for confidence in how the country is being led to take a hit. The last few days will certainly not have helped matters.

Yours,

Chris Stevenson

Voices editor