MP Andrew Bridgen Cautioned for Sharing ‘Conspiracy Theories’ in House of Commons

MP Andrew Bridgen Cautioned for Sharing ‘Conspiracy Theories’ in House of Commons
Andrew Bridgen, a file photo issued on Jan. 11, 2023. PA
Alexander Zhang
Updated:

Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt has scolded independent MP Andrew Bridgen for sharing “conspiracy theories” after he raised concerns about the World Health Organisation (WHO) in the House of Commons.

Bridgen, MP for North West Leicestershire, told the Commons on Thursday that he was concerned about “proposed changes to the WHO international health regulations which will not require a vote” from Parliament to be approved.

He asked: “Can we urgently have a government statement on these proposed changes which could look set to hand over huge powers to an unelected, unaccountable, discredited supra-national body which is hugely funded by the same people who fund big pharma?”

Commons Leader Mordaunt replied: “I think it is incredibly important that we have the facts of whether it is such treaties, whether it is facts about vaccines and so forth out in the public domain.”

Leader of the House of Commons Penny Mordaunt leaves following the weekly Cabinet meeting at 10 Downing Street, in London, on Jan. 17, 2023. (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
Leader of the House of Commons Penny Mordaunt leaves following the weekly Cabinet meeting at 10 Downing Street, in London, on Jan. 17, 2023. Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

She said she would “just again caution” Bridgen for “promoting that Anthony Fauci has created COVID in the United States and then offshored that operation to Wuhan,” and that “this government and its international network of World Economic Forum stooges are encouraging everyone to eat insects.”

She added: “These are outrageous conspiracy theories that he is promoting on his social media and more frequently on the floor of this House, and I would urge him to check his behaviour.”

Lost the Whip

Bridgen was a Conservative MP but lost his Tory whip in January for “spreading misinformation about COVID vaccines.”

To lose a political party’s “whip” means to be expelled from the party altogether, meaning Bridgen is now suspended from sitting as a Conservative MP and must sit without affiliation.

Bridgen had been increasingly vocal in questioning the COVID-19 vaccine.

On Jan. 11, he posted an article on the vaccines, adding, “As one consultant cardiologist said to me, this is the biggest crime against humanity since the holocaust.”

The post has since been deleted.

The post linked to an article authored by Professor Josh Guetzkow, a senior lecturer in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology and the Institute of Criminology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, which was published by ZeroHedge.

Accusations of Anti-Semitism

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Bridgen’s comments were “utterly unacceptable.”

Sunak responded by “completely condemning those kinds of comments we saw this morning in the strongest possible terms.”

“Obviously it is utterly unacceptable to make linkages and use language like that and I’m determined that the scourge of anti-Semitism is eradicated,” he told MPs.

Former Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the words were “disgusting, anti-Semitic, anti-vax conspiracy theories,” without referring directly to Bridgen.

Hancock added the comments were “not only deeply offensive but anti-scientific and have no place in this House or in our wider society.”

Chief Whip Simon Hart said: “Andrew Bridgen has crossed a line, causing great offence in the process.

“As a nation, we should be very proud of what has been achieved through the vaccine programme. The vaccine is the best defence against COVID that we have.

“Misinformation about the vaccine causes harm and costs lives. I am therefore removing the whip from Andrew Bridgen with immediate effect, pending a formal investigation.”

Lord Mann, the government’s independent adviser on anti-Semitism, said Bridgen should be barred from standing for the Tories at the next election.

‘I Agree Completely With Him’

Vera Sharav, a holocaust survivor, directed a documentary series called “Never Again is Now Global,” which drew parallels between what happened under the Nazi regime in the 1930s and the recent policies under COVID-19.

“I agree completely with him,” Sharav previously told The Epoch Times.

And the ones who removed him from the conservative party “were using the Holocaust to discredit him,” she said.

What they really threw him out for was a speech that he delivered earlier that outlined the scientific evidence about the excess deaths the injections were doing to the UK population, according to Sharav.

“They didn’t want a Member of Parliament to be able just to tell the truth,” she said, so they used the Holocaust as a way to defame him.

“The Holocaust is used like a club to bash people,” which is outrageous she said.

‘Saddened’

In a video statement released on Jan. 12, Bridgen said he was “saddened” but not “downhearted.”

“I’m disappointed that the chief whip Simon Hart, with the support of the prime minister, has chosen to suspend me as a member of the Conservative parliamentary party,” said Bridgen.

“My tweet of 11th of January was in no way anti-semitic. Indeed, it alluded to the Holocaust being the most heinous crime against humanity in living memory. Of course, if anyone is genuinely offended by my use of such imagery, then I apologise for any offence caused. I wholeheartedly refute any suggestions that I am racist,” he said.

He added that he was “speaking to a legal team, who will commence action against those who have led the calls suggesting that I am.”

“The fact that I have been suspended over this matter, says much about the current state of our democracy, the right to free speech, and the apparent suspension of the scientific method of analysis of medicines being administered to billions of people,” said Bridgen.

He added that “there are very reasonable questions to be asked about the safety and effectiveness of the experimental mRNA vaccines, and the risks and benefits of these treatments.”

He added that there are “reasonable questions” to ask of a government “that is considering extending the use of these experimental vaccines to children as young as six months of age” and noted that “we have a government who indemnifies vaccine manufacturers from claims against the harms caused by their products.”

“I was saddened to hear yesterday of my suspension, but I’m not downhearted. I’ve received huge support from ordinary people, medical workers who are too intimidated to speak out, and of course from those who’ve experienced vaccine harms themselves, or to a loved one,” said Bridgen.

“Hopefully, the media interest around my suspension will finally get the issue of vaccine harms into the media who have been so reluctant to cover this issue for so long,” he added.

Owen Evans, Lia Onely, and PA Media contributed to this report.