Lawmakers condemn “appalling” video of England’s chief medical officer being verbally abused
England’s Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty was verbally abused in the street and called a liar, a video uploaded to TikTok on Tuesday showed.
In the video, a young man can be seen repeatedly telling Whitty he is a liar.
The TikTok account that posted the video has since been deleted.
Whitty has been at the forefront of Covid-19 pandemic as an adviser for the UK’s government, and regularly appears in press conferences with Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock condemned the video and told BBC Breakfast: “I think the individual concerned is pathetic. I think it’s ridiculous what he’s doing.”
Hancock praised Whitty, saying, “Chris Whitty is one of the 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, incredibly smart and thoughtful and he’s a great asset to this nation.”
Matt Vickers, Conservative MP for Stockton South, also criticized the video via Twitter.
“This is appalling, I really can’t believe this footage,” Vickers wrote. “Chris Whitty is doing all he can to help guide us through this crisis and should never be subjected to this abuse.”
UK Health Department told CNN that they are “worried that the more these videos circulate, the more it might encourage others to do the same thing.”
