Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Johnson slams anti-vaxxers' 'mumbo jumbo'

Johnson slams anti-vaxxers' 'mumbo jumbo'

British prime minister Boris Johnson on Thursday hit out at anti-vaccine campaigners' "mumbo jumbo" and "nonsense" in his toughest attack yet on those opposed to Covid-19 jabs.

"I want to say to the anti-vax campaigners, the people who are putting this mumbo jumbo on social media: they are completely wrong," Johnson told journalists.


"You haven't heard me say that before, because I think it's important we have a voluntary approach in this country and we're going to keep a voluntary approach," he said, during a visit to a vaccination centre.

The UK, already among the European countries worst hit by the pandemic, with a virus death toll of nearly 150,000, has seen a fresh surge in cases due to the arrival of the Omicron variant in late November.

Johnson noted that other European countries were going for "coercion", after Italy on Wednesday made Covid-19 vaccinations mandatory for all those aged over 50, with fines for those who refuse.

"What a tragedy that we've got all this pressure on the NHS (National Health Service), all the difficulties that our doctors and nurses are experiencing and we've got people out there spouting complete nonsense about vaccination," he added.

"It's absolutely wrong, it's totally counterproductive, and the stuff they're putting out on social media is complete mumbo jumbo."

Johnson said Tuesday it was "absolutely crazy" that intensive care units in Britain were being filled by the unvaccinated, pushing stretched NHS resources to the limit.

He noted the country had two million vacant vaccination slots this week and that the majority of people getting intensive hospital care for Covid are not fully jabbed.

England's chief medical officer Chris Whitty added at the time he was "saddened" by the number of unvaccinated patients in hospital and "frustrated" at the deliberate scare tactics of anti-vaxxers.

More For You

Anti-Muslim hate cases rise sharply in Britain, charity warns

Muslim worshippers are seen in Burgess Park during the Eid al-Fitr morning prayer to mark the end of the Holy month of Ramadan, on March 30, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Alishia Abodunde/Getty Images)

Anti-Muslim hate cases rise sharply in Britain, charity warns

REPORTS of anti-Muslim hate have risen sharply in the UK over the summer, with mosques targeted and individuals abused on the streets, new figures from a charity revealed last week.

Tell MAMA, which monitors anti-Muslim incidents, said last Friday (26) it recorded 913 cases between June and September this year. Seventeen mosques and Islamic institutions were also targeted in attacks that, the charity warned, spread fear across communities who use them.

Keep ReadingShow less
Tributes mark Gandhi birth anniversary in London

The statue in London was restored in time for the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi (Photo: X/@HCI_London)

Tributes mark Gandhi birth anniversary in London

A VANDALISED plinth of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue in London was restored in time for the birth anniversary of the Indian freedom icon on Thursday (2).

India’s High Commissioner Vikram Doraiswami and the mayor of Camden Council were joined at Tavistock Square by community leaders s tributes were paid on Gandhi’s birthday, which is marked as the International Day of Non-Violence.

Keep ReadingShow less
Met misconduct
Metropolitan Police
Getty Images

Starmer calls for crackdown on Met misconduct following BBC expose

PRIME MINISTER Keir Starmer on Thursday (2) called for a "robust" response by the head of London's under-fire Metropolitan Police after a BBC undercover report showed officers using excessive force and making racist and misogynistic comments.

The expose is the latest embarrassment for the Met which had pledged to clean up its act after a string of shocking scandals.

Keep ReadingShow less
Seema Malhotra and Baroness Lawrence host race equalities meeting

Baroness Doreen Lawrence and Seema Malhotra

Seema Malhotra and Baroness Lawrence host race equalities meeting

MINISTER for equalities, Seema Malhotra, this week hosted a race equalities meeting at Downing Street and pledged to work for a fairer society, ahead of Black History Month, observed in October.

Ethnic minority leaders and representatives from the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), the British Business Bank, the West Midlands Combined Authority, the National Police Chiefs' Council and Avon and Somerset Police attended a meeting of the Race Equality Engagement Group (REEG) on Monday (29).

Keep ReadingShow less
Seven men jailed for more than 170 years for Rochdale child sexual exploitation

Seven men jailed for more than 170 years for Rochdale child sexual exploitation

A JUDGE has described how vulnerable young girls were let down by local authorities in northern England as he jailed seven members of a child sexual exploitation gang for between 12 to 35 years on Wednesday (1).

The men, all of south Asian descent, exploited at least two vulnerable white teenage girls in Rochdale, near Manchester, using them as "sex slaves".

Keep ReadingShow less