Omicron: Warwickshire councillor's 'dangerous' mask tweet

Councillor Peter Butlin declined to comment when approached by the BBC

A senior councillor has been criticised for a tweet calling face masks "nothing more than symbols of compliance and fear" ahead of their mandatory return.

On 28 November, posts from the account of Conservative Peter Butlin, deputy leader of Warwickshire County Council, suggested he would not wear coverings.

Their use is again being enforced by legislation in shops and public transport in a bid to offset the new Omicron strain of the coronavirus.

Mr Butlin declined to comment.

The authority's leader said he was "entitled to air his personal views" but a local MP branded the comments "irresponsible and dangerous".

Covering the nose and mouth reduces the spread of coronavirus droplets from coughs, sneezes and while speaking.

Amid Tuesday's rollout of new rules around mask use in England following the discovery of Omicron last week, the prime minister said the move would "buy us time" in the face of the variant, cases of which, added health secretary Sajid Javid, were expected to rise.

It is not yet known how Omicron impacts on the effectiveness of vaccines.

On 26 November, a post on Mr Butlin's Twitter account stated he was "sick and tired of people like [Professor Chris] Whitty telling me how to live my life".

There was also a reply to a tweet from journalist Julia Hartley-Brewer suggesting he would not comply with the new rules, saying "no way".

Council leader Izzi Seccombe said in a statement that Mr Butlin was entitled to air his personal views but she insisted the authority's stance on face coverings was clear in encouraging people to wear them in crowded spaces as well as mandatory settings.

Labour MP for Warwick and Leamington, Matt Western, said Mr Butlin's comments were "completely out of step" with the council's position on mask-wearing, and that of the government.

He said the tweets "read as an incitement to break the law and to endanger others and they threaten to undermine all the good work public health teams in Warwickshire have done during the pandemic".