London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

BBC reporter roasted for focusing on fake news of Labour activist ‘punching’ official at Leeds hospital protest

BBC reporter roasted for focusing on fake news of Labour activist ‘punching’ official at Leeds hospital protest

A BBC reporter is feeling the heat on Twitter for deflecting from protests at a Leeds hospital by claiming, without evidence, that a Labour activist punched Health Secretary Matt Hancock’s advisor – which was fake news.

A BBC reporter is feeling the heat on Twitter for deflecting from protests at a Leeds hospital by claiming, without evidence, that a Labour activist punched Health Secretary Matt Hancock’s advisor – which was fake news.

When protesters confronted Hancock over a disturbing picture of a four-year-old boy sleeping on a floor at Leeds General hospital, BBC journalist Laura Kuenssberg seemed to think that the public would be best served by her spreading evidence-free claims that a Tory aide had been punched by a person she described as a “Labour activist.”

Kuenssberg fired off the incendiary (and now-deleted) tweet claiming the protest “turned nasty” based on things she was “hearing” – though she didn’t clarify who exactly she was hearing it from.

When video of the incident emerged online, it showed no evidence of any punches thrown, or much of a scuffle at all. The BBC journalist admitted as much when she posted a subsequent tweet saying it “doesn’t look like” the official was punched – rather, that one of the Tory team walked into a protester’s arm as his back was turned and he was gesticulating.


Though, despite the lack of anything particularly dramatic happening, Kuenssberg stilled called the non-incident a “pretty grim encounter.”

Daily Mail journalist Claire Ellicott also got in on the act, hyping the incident even further by tweeting about unspecified "reports" that an activist had "been arrested" for punching the staffer. Ellicott deleted her tweet after the footage appeared online.

Fellow tweeters wasted no time in calling the reporters out for attempting to make a mountain out of a molehill and scolded her for spreading the rumor without having any of the facts straight.

The activist accused of throwing the punch even tweeted to say the incident occurred on his way home and that in reality it was “all over” after a few comments, no punching involved.


“This did not happen. I was standing right there. I think you need to confirm your evidence before spreading inaccuracies,” he wrote.

Others also chimed in to berate Kuenssberg for sensationalizing the situation.

“Since when has ‘hearing’ something merited a tweet from a BBC (that we pay for) 'journalist?” one person wrote.


“It’s really beneath the BBC to broadcast to a million plus followers what anyone ‘suggests’. Can you not just wait, I don’t know 15 minutes, to report actual facts?” another added.

Kuenssberg later said she was “happy to apologise” for the confusion, claiming she had been told by two mysterious “sources” that Hancock’s advisor had been punched. Though, that didn’t go down very well either, with many refusing to believe it was a satisfactory excuse for spreading rumors with proof to back them up.



Plenty of angry commenters also demanded that she name and shame the sources, who one person described as having “seriously misrepresented an incident of a man walking gently into a finger.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×