David Davis has revealed that last week’s scrap in which he saved a homeless stranger from two thugs was not the first time he had fought to help underdogs.
The former Brexit secretary, who handed the rough sleeper £60 after taking him to A&E, did not always emerge as the winner, he admitted.
The Conservative MP, 74, has now lost contact with rough sleeper Gareth, who is likely once again to be living on the streets. Mr Davis came to Gareth’s defence when he saw two men kicking him in the head.
Mr Davis said: “Last time I saw him, I took him to the A&E and talked them through what had happened to him and said goodbye.
“I gave him £60 to get by and that was that. I couldn’t find him if I tried. He is actually homeless. He has got no location.”
Mr Davis, a former SAS reservist, has come to the aid of innocent people in the past, although he admits the attempts “haven’t always been successful”.
He said: “When people ask how I broke my nose I typically say three times playing rugby, once in an accident and once due to a lack of social skills. The lack of social skills was a similar encounter when I intervened.”
Describing last week’s incident, Mr Davis said: “I had to get between them, be very aggressive. One took a couple of swings at me and I had to slightly manhandle him.
“I didn’t hit them, if you hit them you’ve got to hit them really hard and you might kill them, so I tried not to get into that – otherwise I’d be talking from a prison cell.
“I was basically being very aggressive. One started to back away. The more aggressive one was shocked and that gave me time to get the victim on his feet and away.
“Eventually it was all right. The aggressive one decided he didn’t want a confrontation.”
