Boris denies saying 1,000s of bodies better than lockdown

British PM said ‘let the bodies pile high:’ Daily Mail report; allegation was ‘total, total rubbish;’ former adviser says Johnson was incompetent; UK lawmakers call for PM to publish big pharma lobbying messages

LONDON

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday denied a press report which quoted him as allegedly saying he would rather see “bodies pile high in their thousands” than impose a third national lockdown on the country.

The Daily Mail claimed that Johnson made the comment in the fall of 2020, when his government imposed a second lockdown to combat a surge in coronavirus cases. A third lockdown was ordered in January as infections shot up again, driven by a new, more contagious variant of the virus.

The Daily Mail did not cite a source for the claim, but there has been a spate of leaks from Johnson’s 10 Downing St. office, which are being investigated by government officials.

Johnson said on Monday that the allegation was “total, total rubbish.”

The Daily Mail did not respond to a request for comment but the BBC later also reported that Johnson made the remark in a “heated discussion” about lockdowns. Reuters was unable to immediately verify the reports.