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Isabel Oakeshott has admitted she didn’t tell Matt Hancock she was going to leak 100,000 of his WhatsApp messages before sharing them with the Daily Telegraph.

The Brexiteer journalist and political commentator has passed on more than 2.3 million words from exchanges the former health secretary and his colleagues had about COVID policy at the height of the pandemic.

Her leak broke the non-disclosure agreement she signed that promised she would only use the messages on background to ghost write Mr Hancock’s book, Pandemic Diaries.

She has vehemently defended her decision, which she claims is “overwhelmingly” in the public interest – as she believes the inquiry into the government response to the pandemic will take far too long to achieve genuine justice.

But her reported breach of contract has led to criticism from Conservative MPs and journalists – particularly in light of other controversies she has been involved in.

From King Charles’s school to political journalist

Ms Oakeshott was born in Westminster in the mid-1970s before moving to Scotland.

She attended fee-paying schools St George’s in Edinburgh and Gordonstoun in Moray – where both King Charles and his father the Duke of Edinburgh went.

After graduating with a history degree from the University of Bristol she moved back to Scotland to begin her journalism career in local newspapers.

In the early 2000s she moved to London to be the Evening Standard’s health correspondent.

Read more:
The key WhatsApp exchanges
Analysis: explosive message lay COVID policy bare

Three years later she took her first steps into political journalism and joined the Sunday Times, where in 2010 she was made political editor and in 2011 she was named Political Journalist of the Year at the Press Awards.

A year-long stint as the Daily Mail’s political editor-at-large followed before jobs at GB News presenting her show The Briefing with Isabel Oakeshott in 2021 and as TalkTV’s international editor from mid-2022.

She has three children and was previously married to the American Nigel Rosser. She has since been in a long-term relationship with Richard Tice, the leader of Reform UK, formerly known as the Brexit Party.

Matt Hancock’s book is the 10th she has worked on.

Oakeshott

MP imprisoned and ambassador forced to resign

Following the publication of The Lockdown Files in The Telegraph, Mr Hancock accused Ms Oakeshott of a “massive betrayal and breach of trust”.

But many of his former Tory colleagues have questioned his decision to entrust her with the archive – even with legal protection.

What is an NDA?

In 2011 when she was working at The Sunday Times she agreed to write a story about Vicky Pryce – the ex-wife of former Liberal Democrat minister Chris Huhne, who Ms Pryce had separated from following an affair.

Ms Pryce told Ms Oakeshott she had taken points on her driving licence for a speeding offence Mr Huhne committed.

She discussed with Ms Oakeshott over email how they might report the story to discredit Mr Huhne.

But the front-page article that materialised led to the Crown Prosecution Service revisiting the incident, requesting the email exchanges, and ultimately both Ms Pryce and Mr Huhne being sentenced to eight months in prison for perverting the course of justice.

Isabel Oakeshott arrives at Southwark Crown Court for R v Huhne
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Isabel Oakeshott arrives at Southwark Crown Court for R v Huhne

In 2015 she co-authored a biography of then-prime minister David Cameron with the Conservative peer Lord Ashcroft.

He had felt let down by Mr Cameron, having donated millions to the 2015 election campaign only to be denied a top job in his coalition government.

The book, Call Me Dave, failed to have major success and was largely remembered for the claim Mr Cameron engaged in a sex act with a dead pig while at Oxford University.

He fiercely denied it and Ms Oakeshott later admitted she only had one source to back the allegation up.

“It’s my judgment that the MP was not making it up, although I accept there was a possibility he could have been slightly deranged,” she told a book festival audience.

As an ardent Brexiteer, in 2016 she helped write Arron Banks’s book The Bad Boys of Brexit on his account of the EU referendum.

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Hancock rejects COVID test claims

The Leave.EU founder gave her his texts and emails from the time, which Ms Oakeshott later published in the Sunday Times, revealing he had far more dealings with Russian officials than he had previously admitted.

Three years later in 2019 she wrote a series of articles in the Mail on Sunday that revealed the UK ambassador to the United States Sir Kim Darroch had described Donald Trump’s presidency as “inept” and “utterly dysfunctional”.

He was forced to resign, conceding his position had become untenable.

But following the saga there were claims the story had not been hers – and instead the work of a teenage freelance journalist called Steven Edginton – who was involved with the Brexit Party and had wanted to stay anonymous to avoid any repercussions.

Hancock and Oakeshott have ‘absolutely nothing in common’

During the pandemic, she quickly declared herself a lockdown-sceptic, claiming that outside of clinical environments face masks are merely “political” and “nothing to do with genuine infection control”.

After Mr Hancock’s lockdown-breaking affair with aide Gina Coladangelo forced him to resign, Ms Oakeshott worked with him on his memoir for a year.

She has claimed she wasn’t paid for her work, saying it was “richly rewarding in other ways”.

Matt Hancock and Isabel Oakeshott. Pic: Parsons Media
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Matt Hancock and Isabel Oakeshott. Pic: Parsons Media

But soon after its publication in December last year, Ms Oakeshott wrote a piece for The Spectator alluding to her motives in co-authoring the book.

In it she admitted the pair have “almost nothing in common” and that they “fundamentally disagree” over how COVID should have been dealt with.

‘I broke NDA, but it wasn’t personal’

She hinted: “Journalists don’t only interrogate people they disagree with. Quite the reverse.

“What better way to find out what really happened… than to align myself with the key player?”

Mr Hancock says his leaked messages have been “spun to fit an anti-lockdown agenda” and denies he “ignored” advice to test all people entering care homes in England.

When asked on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme if Ms Oakeshott warned the former minister about her plans to leak the messages, she said: “I didn’t tell him.”

She added in a statement: “Hard though it may be for him to believe, this isn’t about Matt Hancock, or indeed any other individual politician. Nor is it about me.

“We were all let down by the response to the pandemic and repeated unnecessary lockdowns.

“I make no apology whatsoever for acting in the national interest: the worst betrayal of all would be to cover up these truths.”

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Donald Trump announces sweeping global trade tariffs – including 10% on UK imports

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Donald Trump announces sweeping global trade tariffs - including 10% on UK imports

Donald Trump has announced a 10% trade tariff on all imports from the UK – as he unleashed sweeping tariffs across the globe.

Speaking at a White House event entitled “Make America Wealthy Again”, the president held up a chart detailing the worst offenders – which also showed the new tariffs the US would be imposing.

“This is Liberation Day,” he told a cheering audience of supporters, while hitting out at foreign “cheaters”.

Follow live: Trump tariffs latest

He claimed “trillions” of dollars from the “reciprocal” levies he was imposing on others’ trade barriers would provide relief for the US taxpayer and restore US jobs and factories.

Mr Trump said the US has been “looted, pillaged, raped, plundered” by other nations.

President Donald Trump holds a signed executive order during an event to announce new tariffs in the Rose Garden of the White House, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
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Pic: AP

His first tariff announcement was a 25% duty on all car imports from midnight – 5am on Thursday, UK time.

Mr Trump confirmed the European Union would face a 20% reciprocal tariff on all other imports. China’s rate was set at 34%.

The UK’s rate of 10% was perhaps a shot across the bows over the country’s 20% VAT rate, though the president’s board suggested a 10% tariff imbalance between the two nations.

It was also confirmed that further US tariffs were planned on some individual sectors including semiconductors, pharmaceuticals and critical mineral imports.

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Trump’s tariffs explained

The ramping up of duties promises to be painful for the global economy. Tariffs on steel and aluminium are already in effect.

The UK government signalled there would be no immediate retaliation.

Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “We will always act in the best interests of UK businesses and consumers. That’s why, throughout the last few weeks, the government has been fully focused on negotiating an economic deal with the United States that strengthens our existing fair and balanced trading relationship.

“The US is our closest ally, so our approach is to remain calm and committed to doing this deal, which we hope will mitigate the impact of what has been announced today.

“We have a range of tools at our disposal and we will not hesitate to act. We will continue to engage with UK businesses including on their assessment of the impact of any further steps we take.

“Nobody wants a trade war and our intention remains to secure a deal. But nothing is off the table and the government will do everything necessary to defend the UK’s national interest.”

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Who showed up for Trump’s tariff address?

The EU has pledged to retaliate, which is a problem for Northern Ireland.

Should that scenario play out, the region faces the prospect of rising prices because all its imports are tied to EU rules under post-Brexit trading arrangements.

It means US goods shipped to Northern Ireland would be subject to the EU’s reprisals.

The impact of a trade war would be expected to be widely negative, with tit-for-tat tariffs risking job losses, a ramping up of prices and cooling of global trade.

Research for the Institute for Public Policy Research has suggested more than 25,000 direct jobs in the UK car manufacturing industry alone could be at risk from the tariffs on car exports to the US.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) had said the tariff costs could not be absorbed by manufacturers and may lead to a review of output.

The tariffs now on UK exports pose a big risk to growth and the so-called headroom Chancellor Rachel Reeves was forced to restore to the public finances at the spring statement, risking further spending cuts or tax rises ahead to meet her fiscal rules.

Read more:
What do Trump’s tariffs mean for the UK?
The rewards and risks for US as trade war intensifies

A member of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), David Miles, told MPs on Tuesday that US tariffs at 20% or 25% maintained on the UK for five years would “knock out all the headroom the government currently has”.

But he added that a “very limited tariff war” that the UK stays out of could be “mildly positive”.

He said: “There’s a bit of trade that will get diverted to the UK, and some of the exports from China, for example, that would have gone to the US, they’ll be looking for a home for them in the rest of the world.

“And stuff would be available in the UK a bit cheaper than otherwise would have been. So there is one, not central scenario at all, which is very, very mildly potentially positive to the UK. All the other ones which involve the UK facing tariffs are negative, and they’re negative to very different extents.”

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Israel announces military operation expanding in Gaza to seize ‘large areas’

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Israel announces military operation expanding in Gaza to seize 'large areas'

Israel is beginning a major expansion of its military operation in Gaza and will seize large areas of the territory, the country’s defence minister said.

Israel Katz said in a statement that there would be a large scale evacuation of the Palestinian population from fighting areas.

In a post on X, he wrote: “I call on the residents of Gaza to act now to remove Hamas and return all the hostages. This is the only way to end the war.”

He said the offensive was “expanding to crush and clean the area of terrorists and terrorist infrastructure and capture large areas that will be added to the security zones of the State of Israel”.

The expansion of Israel’s military operation in Gaza deepens its renewed offensive.

The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that had begun in January ended in March as Israel launched various air strikes on targets across Gaza.

The deal had seen the release of dozens of hostages and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, but collapsed before it could move to phase two, which would have involved the release of all hostages and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

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26 March: Anti-Hamas chants heard at protest in Gaza

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had already issued evacuation warnings to Gazans living around the southern city of Rafah and towards the city of Khan Yunis, telling them to move to the al Mawasi area on the shore, which was previously designated a humanitarian zone.

Israeli forces have already set up a significant buffer zone within Gaza, having expanded an area around the edge of the territory that had existed before the war, as well as a large security area in the so-called Netzarim corridor through the middle of Gaza.

This latest conflict began when Hamas launched an attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages.

The ensuing Israeli offensive has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry.

Read more:
Father demands protection after Gaza aid workers’ deaths
Anti-Hamas chants heard at rare protest in Gaza

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Bodies of aid workers found in Gaza

Aid group Doctors Without Borders warned on Wednesday that Israel’s month-long siege of Gaza means some critical medications are now short in supply and are running out, leaving Palestinians at risk of losing vital healthcare.

“The Israeli authorities’ have condemned the people of Gaza to unbearable suffering with their deadly siege,” said Myriam Laaroussi, the group’s emergency coordinator in Gaza.

“This deliberate infliction of harm on people is like a slow death; it must end immediately.”

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‘Liberation day is here’: But what will it mean for global trade?

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'Liberation day is here': But what will it mean for global trade?

“Liberation day” was due to be on 1 April. But Donald Trump decided to shift it by a day because he didn’t want anyone to think it was an April fool.

It is no joke for him and it is no joke for governments globally as they brace for his tariff announcements.

It is stunning how little we know about the plans to be announced in the Rose Garden of the White House later today.

It was telling that we didn’t see the President at all on Tuesday. He and all his advisers were huddled in the West Wing, away from the cameras, finalising the tariff plans.

Follow the events of Liberation Day live as they unfold

Three key figures are central to it all.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is the so-called ‘measured voice’. A former hedge fund manager, he has argued for targeted not blanket tariffs.

Peter Navarro is Trump’s senior counsellor for trade and manufacturing. A long-time aide and confidante of the president, he is a true loyalist and a firm believer in the merits of tariffs.

More on Donald Trump

His economic views are well beyond mainstream economic thought – precisely why he appeals to Trump.

‘Stop that crap’: Trump adviser Peter Navarro reacts to Sky News correspondent’s question over tariffs

The third key character is Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary and the biggest proponent of the full-throttle liberation day tariff juggernaut.

The businessman, philanthropist, Trump fundraiser and billionaire (net worth ranging between $1bn and $2bn) has been among the closest to Trump over the past 73 days of this presidency – frequently in and out of the West Wing.

If anything goes wrong, observers here in Washington suspect Trump will make Lutnick the fall guy.

What are Donald Trump’s tariffs, what is ‘liberation day’ and how does it all affect the UK?

And what if it does all go wrong? What if Trump is actually the April fool?

“It’s going to work…” his press secretary said when asked if it could all be a disaster, driving up the cost of living for Americans and creating global economic chaos.

“The president has a brilliant team who have been studying these issues for decades and we are focussed on restoring the global age of America…” Karoline Leavitt said.

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‘Days of US being ripped off are over’

Dancing to the president’s tune

My sense is that we should see “liberation day” not as the moment it’s all over in terms of negotiations for countries globally as they try to carve out deals with the White House. Rather it should be seen as the start.

Trump, as always, wants to be seen as the one calling the shots, taking control, seizing the limelight. He wants the world to dance to his tune. Today is his moment.

But beyond today, alongside the inevitable tit-for-tat retaliation, expect to see efforts by nations to seek carve-outs and to throw bones to Trump; to identify areas where trade policies can be tweaked to placate the president.

Even small offerings which change little in a material sense could give Trump the chance to spin and present himself as the winning deal maker he craves to be.

One significant challenge for foreign governments and their diplomats in Washington has been engaging the president himself with proposals he might like.

Negotiations take place with a White House team who are themselves unsure where the president will ultimately land. It’s resulted in unsatisfactory speculative negotiations.

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Treasury minister: ‘We’ll do everything to secure a deal’

Too much faith placed in the ‘special relationship’?

The UK believes it’s in a better position than most other countries globally. It sits outside the EU giving it autonomy in its trade policy, its deficit with the US is small, and Trump loves Britain.

It’s true too that the UK government has managed to accelerate trade conversations with the White House on a tariff-free trade partnership. Trump’s threats have forced conversations that would normally sit in the long grass for months.

Yet, for now, the conversations have yielded nothing firm. That’s a worry for sure. Did Keir Starmer have too much faith in the ‘special relationship’?

Downing Street will have identified areas where they can tweak trade policy to placate Trump. Cars maybe? Currently US cars into the UK carry a 10% tariff. Digital services perhaps?

US food? Unlikely – there are non-tariff barriers on US food because the consensus seems to be that chlorinated chicken and the like isn’t something UK consumers want.

Easier access to UK financial services maybe? More visas for Americans?

For now though, everyone is waiting to see what Trump does before they either retaliate or relent and lower their own market barriers.

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