A giant asteroid isn’t about to ‘crash into the Earth’s atmosphere’
The closest the asteroid in question will come to the Earth’s surface is 3.5 million miles away. Read
Fact checks
Sarah Turnnidge
Fact Checker (former)
Sarah previously worked for HuffPost UK, and before that worked in local newsrooms including the Bristol Post, the Essex Echo and the Thurrock Independent.
Health
No evidence masks limit oxygen for children
A post on Instagram claims masks ‘do nothing’ but limit oxygen flow and increase risk of bacteria and illness. Read
Fact checks
Economy, Business & Finance
The Warm Home Discount is £140 for the entire winter, not a week
The Prime Minister described the discount incorrectly during PMQs. Read
Fact checks
Boris Johnson did say inflation fears had been ‘unfounded’
The Prime Minister denied ever making the comment during the first PMQs of the year. Read
Fact checks
Health
Tap water can’t test positive for Covid-19
Using a lateral flow test incorrectly will produce unreliable and misleading results. Read
Fact checks
Crime
Priti Patel’s tweet on police funding doesn’t account for inflation
A graph claiming to show a large increase in police funding fails to take into account inflation. Read
Fact checks
Education
Iain Duncan Smith’s figures on school absence are out of date
The former Conservative leader claimed that more than 90,000 pupils are now absent from school. Read
Fact checks
Charles Bronson has not taken the father of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes hostage in prison
The two men are in different prisons. Read
Fact checks
Immigration
No evidence asylum seekers have used pets to argue against deportation
A previously debunked claim about people being granted the right to live in the UK because they own a pet here has reappeared. Read
Fact checks
Do police normally investigate things that happened a year ago?
Asked about an alleged party at Downing Street during lockdown, Dominic Raab claimed police ‘don’t normally’ investigate alleged offences which took place a year ago. Read
Fact checks
