A video showing England’s chief medical officer Chris Whitty being insulted on the street has been condemned.
Politicians, social media users and media outlets have all condemned the footage which was shared on the social media platform TikTok.
The video showed a young man repeatedly accusing England’s chief medical officer of “lying” about Covid-19, while the scientist was out walking near Westminster in central London..
*Please share*
— Matt Vickers MP (@Matt_VickersMP) February 2, 2021
This is appalling, I really can't believe this footage.
Chris Whitty is doing all he can to help guide us through this crisis and should never be subjected to this abuse. pic.twitter.com/90wxuQZW0t
Whitty is approached by the man, who is holding the camera who proceeds to walk around Prof Whitty, telling him: “Liar. You’re a liar. Mandem is a liar. You’re a liar. You lie about the Covid-19 cases. Stop lying to the TV, man.”
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Professor Whitty did not respond to taunts but instead put on his mask while he waited to be served at a nearby stall.
Sharing the video on Twitter - Matt Vickers MP wrote: “Please share.
“This is appalling, I really can't believe this footage.
“Chris Whitty is doing all he can to help guide us through this crisis and should never be subjected to this abuse.”
Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Mr Hancock said: “I think the individual concerned is pathetic, I think it is ridiculous what he is doing.
“Chris Whitty is one of our greatest living scientists and his advice to the Government all the way through this, and his advice to all of us in the population, has been incredibly smart and thoughtful, and he is a great asset to this nation.
“The idea that someone would do something as silly as that is ridiculous.”
He added: “Chris Whitty is a scientist of great repute and, frankly, he should be respected by everybody.”
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One social media user wrote: "I feel so sorry for Chris Whitty, the amount he has done to try and help us keep safe and save as many lives as possible throughout the pandemic and he gets treated like this?! It’s absolutely appalling!"
Another added: "This is awful. Chris Whitty has been one of the heroes of this pandemic, ie working in the respiratory wards over the Christmas weekend..."
The video has been viewed on Twitter alone over 385,000 times and has been widely shared.
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