UK PM Johnson says he is well and will govern by Zoom after COVID-19 contact

By Guy Faulconbridge and Kate Holton

 

FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson leaves Downing Street to attend a cabinet meeting at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in London, Britain November 10, 2020. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo

 

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was perfectly well after coming into contact with someone with COVID-19 and will drive the government forward via Zoom while he self-isolates for two weeks in Downing Street.

 

Johnson's latest brush with COVID comes after a tumultuous week in which his most senior adviser, arch Brexiteer Dominic Cummings, was ousted after clashing with a rival faction led by his fiancée and his new spokeswoman.

 

From a flat above Downing Street, Johnson will have to grapple with Europe's deadliest COVID-19 outbreak and master the delicate diplomacy needed to clinch a last-minute Brexit trade agreement within days.

 

"I'm fit as a butcher's dog - feel great," Johnson said in a video tweet, smiling and wearing a jumper with an open shirt. "I'm bursting with antibodies.

 

"Plenty more to say via Zoom of course and other means of electronic communication," Johnson, 56, added.

 

Trying to reassure staff at his No. 10 Downing Street office after losing his most senior advisers, the prime minister repeated the message via Zoom that he was ready to tackle the government's priorities - COVID and his levelling up agenda.

 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday posted a video message on his Twitter account in which he said he was perfectly well after coming into contact with someone with COVID-19, and will govern via Zoom while he self-isolates for two weeks in Downing Street.

 

"He thanked his political and civil service teams for all of their hard work and said the ambition of this government is absolutely undimmed and if anything growing the whole time," his spokesman said.

 

Johnson announced on Sunday that he had been told by the NHS Test & Trace scheme to self-isolate for two weeks after it was confirmed that a lawmaker, Lee Anderson, who attended a 35-minute meeting with him on Thursday, had tested positive.

 

When Johnson caught COVID-19 in March, he tried to work through the illness "in denial" - but ended up wearing an oxygen mask in an intensive care unit and was ultimately out of action for almost a month.

 

He later said he had fought for his life as the state prepared for the unthinkable: the possible death in office of a prime minister.

 

Johnson has repeatedly spoken about how the apparent brush with death this year changed his outlook. He has often talked of the need to lose weight after reaching 17st 6lb (112 kg), which he said was too much for a man with a height of 5ft 10in (1.78 m).

 

(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge and Kate Holton; additional reporting by Elizabeth Piper, editing by Costas Pitas and Ed Osmond)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-11-17

 

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7 hours ago, webfact said:

He has often talked of the need to lose weight after reaching 17st 6lb (112 kg), which he said was too much for a man with a height of 5ft 10in (1.78 m).

Face it like a man: You are obese.

On that note, have a pizza.

What a clown. Still not following his own basic rules re social distancing after all this time despite previously having the virus. 

 

Calls himself a leader, he’s an embarrassment. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"I'm fit as a butcher's dog - feel great," Johnson said in a video tweet, smiling and wearing a jumper with an open shirt. "I'm bursting with antibodies.

Compared to his buddy Trump, he's not quite as crazy. At least his delusions are a tad less (British understatement in action?). Didn't Trump say he felt like Superman (maybe an admission of feeling poorly, as usually feels like God or at least sent by God & not from Krypton...).

He certainly is bursting with something, I'll give him that

50 minutes ago, Kadilo said:

What a clown. Still not following his own basic rules re social distancing after all this time despite previously having the virus. 

 

Calls himself a leader, he’s an embarrassment. 

Little doubt, more gaffs than the fishing community.

 

Boris Johnson has caused a backlash by reportedly calling devolution "a disaster north of the border" and “Tony Blair’s worst mistake”.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-devolution-disaster-scotland-snp-b1723985.html

 

Scotland's secret weapon in the independence saga.

I guess the advantage of being in self isolation is that you are not going to get door stepped to answer the difficult questions.  Something that Johnson avoids on a regular basis.  No wonder he is smirking!

Governing by zoom and twitter seems to be all the rage these days amongst populist leaders...unless you are Bolsonaro where governing by sheer macho lunacy without technological assistance will do....

The sensible and responsible thing to do in the circumstances.

 

Of course, haterz gonna hate.

59 minutes ago, sandyf said:

Little doubt, more gaffs than the fishing community.

 

Boris Johnson has caused a backlash by reportedly calling devolution "a disaster north of the border" and “Tony Blair’s worst mistake”.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-devolution-disaster-scotland-snp-b1723985.html

 

Scotland's secret weapon in the independence saga.

 

His lack of political nous is truly bewildering. Already, the leader of the Scottish branch of the Tories has had to openly reject his own PM's assertion but now Scottish Labour is up in arms at his criticism too.

 

Not only has he created a rift within the dependentists, his own party has had to issue a statement contradicting him. 

He could not govern when in person, is this zoom thing magic?

Surely Zoom is not secure.

4 hours ago, Kadilo said:

What a clown. Still not following his own basic rules re social distancing after all this time despite previously having the virus. 

 

Calls himself a leader, he’s an embarrassment. 

 

Some people can’t be told.

 

Calls himself a leader because the people voted him in as leader.

 

At least they got him locked up early, stopped him from running around shaking everyone’s hands and spreading it around like last time. He is a danger to himself and a danger to others.

2 hours ago, JonnyF said:

The sensible and responsible thing to do in the circumstances.

 

Of course, haterz gonna hate.

Don't think he had much choice in the matter once he'd been tracked and traced. Left to his own devices, would he have done the 'sensible and responsible thing'? I doubt it, it's not really in his nature.

1 hour ago, Pedrogaz said:

Surely Zoom is not secure.

Maybe they’ll catch him deleted. 

It's high time for him to start govern UK. 

Probably the covid side effects have a tremendous impact of his abilities. 

Hopefully not fathering ????????????????????

On 11/17/2020 at 4:14 PM, RuamRudy said:

 

His lack of political nous is truly bewildering. Already, the leader of the Scottish branch of the Tories has had to openly reject his own PM's assertion but now Scottish Labour is up in arms at his criticism too.

 

Not only has he created a rift within the dependentists, his own party has had to issue a statement contradicting him. 

I seen him on PMQ's last night, unbelievable.

Obviously he has no respect for public opinion if he thinks people are wrong to vote for SNP, probably a result of the English being conned into voting for brexit.

It was fairly clear from an answer yesterday he does not acknowledge that Scotland voted against brexit.