Tory calls TV’s Fox ‘nuclear powered p****’ over facemask exemption badge
ACTOR Laurence Fox was branded a ‘ nuclear powered p*** k’ and ‘ loathsome tool’ last night by a Tory politician over an anti-lockdown stunt.
Fox sparked outrage after sharing a photo of himself wearing a Covid ‘mask exemption’ badge he ordered on Amazon.
The 42-year-old star of the TV drama Lewis has openly bragged about breaking lockdown rules over the past few months, claiming he has had large groups over for lunch, hugged friends, and urged followers to ‘take off your masks’ over Christmas.
His latest stunt was buying a fake lanyard for £11 to exempt himself from wearing a mask in public.
He shared the photo on Twitter on Friday beneath a post in which he appears to mock people who wear facemasks.
He was seen wearing a badge that read: ‘I am exempt from wearing a face covering.’ In smaller letters, it added: ‘ Be kind. Keep your distance. Thank you for understanding.’ Fox wrote above the image: ‘After a long period of consultation with myself, an extended review period and proper due diligence conducted with myself, I’ve received the badge that I ordered from Amazon. Thank you for being there for me. #anxiety.’
Conservative MP Simon Hoare, who is chairman of the Northern Ireland Affairs Select Committee, shared Fox’s post, writing: ‘I hadn’t realised that being a first class, ocean going, chateau bottled, nuclear p owe redp***kwa san exemption from wearing a mask. What a selfish loathsome tool this man is.’
The spat came as a survey showed that more than three-quarters of the public are adhering to the Government’s coronavirus restrictions. Despite concern in Whitehall that people are flouting the rules more than during the first lockdown, 78 per cent of those polled said they were complying ‘ completely or nearly all of the time’. Just one per cent said they were openly disobeying the legal requirements.
Ipsos Mori said the proportion sticking to the rules was the highest since it had begun polling on the subject last May.
In a further boost to the Government, the survey also found that just nine per cent of people thought t the current lockdown was too s strict, compared with 14 per c cent in November. In fact, 48 per cent considered the latest restrictions were not tough enough. Two thirds of those polled thought the majority of the public were properly following the Government’s rules, with 71 per cent saying the authorities should hand out fines to those flouting the law.
There is clear support for the wider use of masks– 76 per cent thought they should be mandatory in workplace sand 61 per cent wanted that extended to outside spaces.
Ben Page, chief executive of Ipsos Mori, said: ‘People are behaving better than they were back in the summer. I think it’s because they can see there is a clear and present danger. The media coverage of overwhelmed hospitals is very convincing.’
‘ Overall the public has always taken this virus fairly seriously and has put health ahead of the economy. The public is pretty clear throughout this pandemic that it will do what it takes to try and control the spread of infection. People are saying that they are finding it harder to stay positive but compliance is increasing.’
There were, however, a significant minority willing to bend the lockdown rules. One in four said they felt it was still acceptable to socialise in the garden with friends or family from outside their household and 30 per cent said it was acceptable to have a partner from another household visit their home.