A surgeon made several incorrect claims about Covid-19 vaccine on GB News
Ahmad Malik has misused various different sources to falsely suggest that the vaccines are dangerous. Read
Fact checks
Leo Benedictus
Journalist
Leo joined Full Fact in January 2020. For 15 years, he worked freelance as a feature writer for the Guardian, Prospect, the New Scientist and others, making maps of immigration, explaining citizens’ assemblies and debunking superfoods. He has a fondness for science and statistics. He also writes novels.
Covid-19 vaccines don’t make you a ‘ticking time bomb’
There is no evidence that they cause cancer. In very rare cases, there is a link to blood clots, but the benefits of vaccination generally far outweigh the risks. Read
Fact checks
An Instagram post underestimates Covid-19 deaths among younger people
Just over 17,000 people under 65 died of the disease in England and Wales, up to the end of November 2021. Read
Fact checks
The Covid-19 vaccines don’t have ‘negative efficacy’
Data from the UKHSA vaccine surveillance report cannot be used to estimate effectiveness correctly—as the report itself makes clear many times. Read
Fact checks
A Covid-19 patient on BBC News is not a ‘crisis actor’
He was genuinely ill at the time of the interview, and later added the words “crisis actor” to his Instagram profile as a joke. Read
Fact checks
Health
What were the rules on outdoor parties in May 2020?
Large gatherings in public spaces were certainly not allowed, but Downing Street is also a workplace, so other rules may have applied. Read
Analysis
Health
Boris Johnson misspoke about unvaccinated people in ICU
Around 90% of Covid ICU admissions have not received a booster, but only about 61% are not vaccinated at all. Read
Fact checks
Health
A Guido Fawkes ‘fact check’ incorrectly claims the SNP is wrong
The SNP quoted Covid-19 figures from the ONS correctly. Read
Fact checks
TikTok joke about masks in Zoom meetings is taken seriously on Facebook
This comes from a satirical account in the US. It isn’t true. Read
Fact checks
Health
Anna Soubry was wrong to say that the ‘overwhelming majority’ of Covid-19 patients are unvaccinated
The latest data at the time she was speaking showed that the unvaccinated made up 46% of admissions in England—although this might change when new data is published. Read
Fact checks
