Boris Johnson under fire after grabbing reporter’s phone when shown photo of sick boy in run-up to UK general election
- Journalist was trying to get British PM’s response on four-year-old who had to be treated on hospital floor because there were no beds available
- Along with Brexit, future of British health service has become prominent campaign issue as general election looms
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson came under fire on Monday for his response to being shown a photo of a sick child lying on a hospital floor ahead of the December 12 election.
Johnson’s Conservatives lead the opposition Labour Party in opinion polls, with Brexit and the future of the country’s public health service the two most prominent campaign issues.
During an interview, an ITV reporter repeatedly tried to show Johnson a picture on his phone of the four-year-old boy lying on a pile of coats, which featured on the front page of the Labour-supporting Daily Mirror.
The newspaper said the boy had suspected pneumonia and had to be treated on the floor because there were no beds available.
Johnson initially avoided looking at the phone, and instead began describing his investment plans for the National Health Service (NHS) while saying he had not had a chance to see the photo.