Police investigating after Chris Whitty accosted in park

The video footage from the incident on Sunday evening was shared online

Police are investigating video footage which appears to show England's chief medical officer, Prof Chris Whitty, being accosted by two men in a park.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was "shocked at seeing the despicable harassment" of Prof Whitty.

The video shows two men laughing and jeering as they grab hold of Prof Whitty, who struggles to free himself.

The Met Police said it happened in St James's Park in London on Sunday and all those involved had been spoken to.

The force said when officers spoke to Prof Whitty, he had not suffered any injuries and told them at the time that he did not wish to make any allegations.

It added that the incident has been recorded as a common assault and continues to be investigated.

The PM tweeted: "I condemn the behaviour of these thugs. Our hard-working public servants should not have to face this kind of intimidation on our streets and we will not tolerate it."

Other MPs to criticise the incident included new Health Secretary Sajid Javid, who said it was "appalling and totally unacceptable".

He added: "The CMO (chief medical officer) works tirelessly on behalf of the country... the men behaving in this disgraceful way should be ashamed."

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer described it as "disgusting behaviour", adding that the police were right to investigate "this harassment".

Jess Phillips, a Labour MP, tweeted: "Even if you perceive it as non-violent, it is clear that he felt awful and uncomfortable and resisted.

"Public figures are not dolls, they are human beings, it is stunning how easily this is forgotten."

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It is not the first time Prof Whitty has been filmed being confronted by a member of the public.

Earlier this month, a man in Oxford accused him of lying to the public about coronavirus, while in February a man accosted the chief medical officer outside Westminster.

And a group of people gathered outside what was apparently Prof Whitty's London flat on Saturday, chanting and shouting.

Is the answer to Prof Whitty's ordeal police protection?

Certainly, if a senior cabinet minister was walking through St James's Park, they would have security watching their back.

The word "harassment" doesn't convey how shocking the confrontation looks and how vulnerable Prof Whitty must have felt.

Nor is it the first time he has been confronted by phone-wielding blokes.

His colleague, deputy chief medical officer Prof Jonathan Van-Tam, was also accosted by an anti-vaccine activist in Whitehall last week.

They are not politicians - they are officials leading efforts to fight a pandemic who have become public figures.

So yes, perhaps protection is part of the answer. Westminster is sprinkled with police officers and they guard the gates of Parliament and No 10, but it rarely feels heavily policed unless there is a demonstration under way.

Asked whether Prof Whitty and his colleagues would be offered police protection, the prime minister's official spokesman said: "We keep security under constant review but I'm not going to be commenting on specific arrangements for individuals."

In its latest statement on Tuesday evening, the Met said: "We are aware of a video being shared online showing an incident that took place in St James's Park at around 19:20 on the evening of Sunday, 27 June.

"Officers were in the vicinity policing a nearby demonstration and intervened when they saw what was happening.

"They spoke to the victim and checked his welfare. He had not suffered any injuries and informed officers that at that time he did not wish to make any allegations. He then went on his way.

"Officers continued to speak to the two men and recorded their details. They were robustly warned about their behaviour and ordered to leave the area."

Who is Prof Chris Whitty?

Prof Chris Whitty (left) has regularly appeared alongside the PM at televised Covid briefings

Since the start of the coronavirus crisis, he has been front and centre of the UK's decision-making and communication of messages to the public.

He took on the chief medical officer role in October 2019, and until the coronavirus threat emerged, had never done broadcast interviews or held press briefings or conferences.

One of the country's foremost experts in infectious diseases, he has worked as a doctor in Africa and Asia, as well as the UK.

He continues to practise medicine at University College London Hospitals, where he was spotted doing a shift over Christmas.

His father was a diplomat, who was murdered by terrorists in Greece after they flagged him down in his car in 1984.

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