London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

Covid: Anti-vaccine campaigns are mumbo jumbo, says PM

Covid: Anti-vaccine campaigns are mumbo jumbo, says PM

Boris Johnson has accused anti-vaccine campaigners of speaking "mumbo jumbo" when it comes to coronavirus jabs.

The prime minister said those spreading false information on social media were "totally wrong" and it was time for him "to call them out".

Some European countries are making vaccination mandatory, but Mr Johnson stressed it was important for the UK to maintain its voluntary approach.

In the UK, 90% of over-12s have now had at least one dose of a Covid vaccine.

And nearly 83% have had a second dose, while 60% have had their booster or third primary dose.

Thursday's coronavirus figures showed 179,756 new cases had been reported in the UK and 231 deaths within 28 days of a positive test.

Mr Johnson, who was speaking while on a visit to a vaccination centre in Northampton, said: "I want to say to the anti-vax campaigners, the people who are putting this mumbo jumbo on social media: they are completely wrong.

"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."

Mr Johnson said some other European nations were going for "coercion".

Italy is the latest country to make vaccination compulsory for some, with all over-50s now being told to have a jab. Austria was the first to make it a legal requirement.

The prime minister said: "What a tragedy that we've got all this pressure on the NHS, all the difficulties that our doctors and nurses are experiencing, and we've got people out there spouting complete nonsense about vaccination.

"They are totally wrong, and I think it's time that I, the government, call them out on what they're doing. It's absolutely wrong, it's totally counterproductive, and the stuff they're putting out on social media is complete mumbo jumbo."

He said some 30-40% of the 17,000 patients in hospital with Covid "haven't actually been vaccinated at all". This is "increasingly true" of those in intensive care, added Mr Johnson, as the "overwhelming majority of them have not been boosted".

People should "behave sensibly" as well as recognising "the vital importance of vaccination", he added.


The vast majority of adults in the UK have had Covid-19 vaccines - but that hasn't stopped anti-vaccine activists from continuing their crusade against jabs.

Their tactics change and evolve according to social media policies and what's in the news. They generally promote unfounded claims about the jabs relating to emotive topics. Some brandish scientific titles in a bid to play on trust in experts.

The reasons behind vaccine hesitancy vary. Some can't get a jab because of medical reasons. Others are on the fence, or don't see the personal benefit. It's only a tiny minority of the unjabbed who are ardent anti-vaxxers.

But that group is extremely active on social media, sharing posts and videos that exploit doubt and fear in order to advance their agenda.

A select few do it for money or clicks, but others are simply true believers being pulled deeper into an online movement.

In recent months, it's become clear that anti-vax activists are losing their battle. Some are trying to create their own small communities.

But a few are turning to increasingly aggressive tactics - threatening doctors, journalists and politicians online and even turning up to their houses.

Mr Johnson said while Omicron is milder than previous variants, "the pressures on hospitals are clear".

The number of hospital trusts in England to be in critical incident status amid staffing shortages and rising numbers of coronavirus cases is currently thought to be 17. A critical incident is declared when a trust is worried it might not be able to provide core priority services like emergency care.

But the prime minister said it was not true that the NHS does not have enough staff to cope with the increasing pressure - with staff numbers increasing, retired staff being called back and volunteers being used.

Mr Johnson said the UK vaccination programme would continue to be voluntary


"What we've got to do is give the NHS all the help we can through the next period, with all the simplifications of systems, moving staff from one hospital to another, all the ways we can back staff up, but also make sure that the people who are likely to get ill get vaccinated first," he said.

"The saddest words in the English language are 'too late'. When you're in ICU and you haven't been vaccinated, sadly it's too late to get vaccinated, so get boosted now."

Asked about Australia's detention of men's tennis world number one Novak Djokovic, amid a row over his vaccination status, Mr Johnson said he shares the view that it is a "very good idea to get vaccinated".

But he said the decision to detain the tennis player was a "matter for Australia".

Figures released by NHS England on Thursday suggest fewer than half of all adults in some of England's biggest cities have had a booster or third dose of a Covid vaccine.

In Nottingham, the take-up of the extra jab among over-18s is estimated to be 42.8%, while it is 45.7% in Manchester, 49.9% in Birmingham and 49.1% in Liverpool.

The figures, for vaccinations given up to 2 January, suggest Newham in London has the lowest rate of take-up for boosters and third doses out of all English local authorities, with 38.5% of all adults having had the extra jab. The Gloucestershire Cotswolds area is estimated to have the highest rate, at 83%.


PM speaks out against anti-vax "mumbo jumbo"


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
After 200,000 Orders in 2 Minutes: Xiaomi Accelerates Marketing in Europe
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
×