Andrew Bridgen: MP says he is saddened by Tory party suspension

MP Andrew Bridgen has said he is "saddened" after being suspended from the Tory Party for spreading misinformation about Covid vaccines.

He posted a tweet on Wednesday which drew a comparison between vaccines and the Holocaust.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said his comments were "utterly unacceptable".

Mr Bridgen said his post was "in no way anti-Semitic", and he was "downhearted" but would continue to ask "reasonable questions" about the vaccine.

Mr Bridgen had previously welcomed the development of the Covid vaccines, but has recently begun to make baseless claims including that damage caused by the vaccines was being covered up.

At first, he began highlighting some real, but rare, instances of genuine vaccine injury and misinterpreting real data to suggest these cases were more common than the research suggests.

He posted a link to an article on vaccines, adding the comment: "As one consultant cardiologist said to me, this is the biggest crime against humanity since the Holocaust."

Conservative Party Chief Whip Simon Hart said the comments had "crossed a line".

"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."

Karen Pollock, chief executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, called Mr Bridgen's comments "highly irresponsible and wholly inappropriate".

Mr Hart said Mr Bridgen would lose the party whip - meaning he will sit as an independent - while a formal investigation takes place.

Responding to his suspension in a video on his YouTube channel, Mr Bridgen said he was "saddened... but not downhearted".

Defending his comments, he said: "My tweet on 11 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 suggestion that I am racist and currently am speaking to a legal team who will commence action to those who have led the calls suggesting that I am."

The MP insisted his questions about the vaccine were "reasonable" adding: "I will continue to ask them."

Extensive independent research has found that coronavirus vaccines are very effective at preventing deaths.

Serious side effects involving Covid vaccines, including approximately 60 deaths in England and Wales, are rare, given the tens of millions of doses administered.

Mr Bridgen's local Conservative association said it did not agree with the MP's comments.

In a statement, the North West Leicestershire Conservatives said: "We support the suspension of the whip to allow for an investigation into those comments to be carried out and can make no further comments until this investigation is completed."