Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty has been verbally abused while queuing for his lunch at a market stall.
Prof. Whitty – who appears most days at Downing Street pandemic briefings – was called a “liar”.
His abuser, filming the moment on his mobile, added:
“You lie about the Covid-19 cases… stop lying to the TV, man”.
Prof. Whitty does not respond to the confrontation.
He pulls up his mask and continues to wait for his lunch order to be served.
The footage – shot in Strutton Ground Market near Westminster – was later uploaded to TikTok.
MPs have urged people not to share it online.
Stockton South MP Matt Vickers (Con) condemned the abuse as “appalling”.
He said Prof. Whitty was doing his “absolute best” and “working “day in and day out to help guide the nation through this unprecedented crisis”.
He added:
“As the clouds of this pandemic continue to part, I think those like Prof. Chris Whitty will be seen as heroes who stepped up, did their job and led us through the darkest of hours.
“As for the young man in the video, the less said the better.
“Perhaps he should be made to volunteer on a Covid ward.
“Perhaps then he will feel a pinch of shame and embarrassment for his dangerous conspiracies and yobbish behaviour.”
And Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the man who filmed Prof. Whitty was “pathetic”.
He said: “I think that it is ridiculous what he’s doing.
“Chris Whitty is one of our greatest scientists and his advice to the Government all the way through this had been incredibly smart and thoughtful, and he’s a great asset to this nation.”
