Boris Johnson’s claim that the Church of England is behind the country’s obesity crisis has left people on social media scratching their heads.
According to The Times, the former PM said the church has not given the public enough “spiritual sustenance” and so they “gorge themselves” on food instead.
He claimed religious leaders like Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby – who has since resigned – should be focused on addressing “people’s spiritual needs” rather than talking about slavery reparations.
Johnson believes Welby should “ask himself why people in this country are so bloody fat” instead.
Johnson also claimed that when he was young, it was “very rare for there to be a fatso in the class. Now they’re all fatsos and I’d be shot for saying they’re fatsos, but it’s the truth.”
He said in the past, people “ate Spangles and Curly Wurlies and dog shit... but they expended far more energy and nowadays kids are sitting on screens and being told that it’s all too dangerous to go outside because there are paedophiles everywhere”.
“There’s too much risk averse [aversion] about what kids can do, so they don’t take up exercise,” he claimed.
Johnson, who faced criticism for not announcing a Covid lockdown early enough in 2020, also claimed the pandemic hit the UK “particularly badly because we were so fat”.
Recalling his own serious Covid infection, he continued: “I had my own experience in ICU. I noticed it was all middle-aged men and quite fat, a bit like me, and I came out of that thinking crikey, we’ve got to sort this out.”
The current government was quick to pour cold water on the ex-PM’s theories, though.
When asked about Johnson’s remarks today, the prime minister’s spokesperson told journalists: “I didn’t quite follow his line of argument.
“When it comes to obesity, the government has taken decisive action to tackle the obesity crisis, which does have a negative impact, including life-limiting illnesses and costing the economy billions, as well as adding further strain to an overstretched NHS.”
People on social media seemed just as confused as the PM’s spokesperson, describing the former Tory MP’s bizarre outburst as “desperate” and “peak Johnson”.