Politics

Johnson offered to be injected with Covid live on TV before he caught the virus

Boris Johnson offered to be injected with Covid-19 live on TV before he was hospitalised with the virus, Dominic Cummings is expected to tell MPs today.

In an extraordinary claim, the PM’s former aide will accuse him of being responsible for ‘thousands of deaths’ by delaying a second lockdown when a second wave of the virus hit the UK in the winter.

He will allege Mr Johnson was slow to react to the pandemic because he was on a ‘prolonged holiday’ with partner Carrie Symonds in February last year, the Daily Mail reports.

And will elaborate on his claim that the Government initially pursued a ‘herd immunity’ policy at the dawn of the coronavirus crisis when he gives his testimony.

But most sensationally, it has been alleged that Mr Cummings will say Johnson was willing to be injected with Covid live on TV to reassure the public.

He will claim the PM said: “I’m going to get Chris Whitty (Chief Medical Officer) to inject me with it live on national TV so everyone can see it’s nothing to be scared of.”

The PM reportedly made the remark on repeated occasions before he was hospitalised and nearly died from Covid-19.

Cummings is also expected to allege that Johnson referred to Covid as ‘Kung-Flu’, a term coined by Donald Trump in June last year.

And ITV’s Robert Peston reported on Tuesday that Mr Cummings will allege the PM said “Covid is only killing 80-year-olds” in a bid to delay the autumn lockdown.

Related: UK banks and investors would be ‘9th biggest polluter in the world’ if they were a country

Jack Peat

Jack is a business and economics journalist and the founder of The London Economic (TLE). He has contributed articles to VICE, Huffington Post and Independent and is a published author. Jack read History at the University of Wales, Bangor and has a Masters in Journalism from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Published by