You don’t need your NHS number to get a Covid-19 vaccine
A widely shared post on social media claims people who don’t know their NHS number are causing a ‘bottleneck’. Read
Fact check
Fact checks
From false health claims to misleading statements on immigration, politics and conflict—our expert team delivers impartial, evidence based fact checks.
Health
There are excess deaths in England and these PHE reports don’t prove otherwise
Reporting lags over Christmas distorted Public Health England’s estimates, which have since been updated. Read
Fact check
The laws introducing a third English lockdown do not make the Covid-19 vaccine mandatory
Parliament did vote on new regulations on Wednesday, but these new rules didn’t make vaccines mandatory. Read
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Health
Flawed comparisons between test and trace systems go viral
Claims suggesting the system in England costs vastly more than those in Wales and Ireland uses incomparable figures. Read
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Health
More people are dying than usual at the moment
Dr John Lee claimed on talkRADIO that the number of deaths is below the long-term average, but this isn’t true. Read
Fact check
A satirical caption in a South African newspaper under a picture of a British woman getting the vaccine has caused confusion
The photo of a woman getting a Covid-19 vaccine has been used as evidence that the media is lying to people. Read
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Health
Millions—not thousands—caught Covid last year
Doctors only report a small fraction of Covid infections through the NOIDs system. Read
Fact check
The time on Boris Johnson’s watch does not prove his televised address wasn’t live
The watch appears upside down to the viewer, but shows 8pm. Read
Fact check
The government has awarded a contract to develop technology that proves you’ve recently had a negative Covid-19 test
This doesn’t mean that vaccination passports are planned. Read
Fact check
The needles in some syringes are supposed to ‘disappear’
Some syringes have a spring which retracts the needle once the dose is administered. Read
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Evidence you can rely on
Fact checking claims made by politicians, public figures and viral online content can give you the full picture backed by the evidence.
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