Clinching in the breach: Matt Hancock resigns

The deflectors were also tapping away. Those sympathising with Hancock within the government were aghast at the very existence of a camera in the office. Had he been the victim of an orchestrated sting by enemies in Number 10? Or did some meddlesome power such as China wish to cause ripples by installing a clinch catching "love bug"?

The smug Mail on Sunday poured water on suggestions of foul play. "In fact, pictures taken in September 2017, just before Hancock moved in, show that the camera which caught the clinch is clearly visible on the ceiling of his office." But the Tories were also searching for another alibi that would, if not exonerate Hancock then at least provide a distraction from his conduct.

To that end, suspicion started growing legs with commentary on the camera's make. While rented from a Singaporean firm, it stems from Chinese manufacturer Hikvision, a company under contract to supply surveillance equipment to the authorities in China's Xinjiang region. Despite being blacklisted by Washington in October 2019 for its role in conducting surveillance of Uighurs in the region's network of "re-education camps", US cities, counties and schools have made good use of them during the pandemic. In Britain, city councils employ them in public spaces.

The China Research Group, run by Tory MPs keen to drum up fears about China, fastened on Hikvision's role in the Hancock affair in a statement. "There are questions over whether [Hikvision cameras] are currently used in Portcullis House (where MPs have their offices) and the Palace of Westminster (where the House of Lords and the House of Commons is located)." The group feared "the potential for Chinese intelligence agencies to tap into camera feeds in sensitive locations".

The nature and scope of the forthcoming inquiry is uncertain. A full-blooded investigation, no holds barred, might well reveal a bit more than the Department of Health might want to reveal. Investigators run the risk of lionising a potential whistleblower while uncovering a good deal of rot at the centre of the Johnson government. And few civil servants, and certainly no government politician, would like to see that.