Doncaster senior Labour official 'spreads conspiracy theory Boris Johnson didn't have coronavirus'

Andi Fox, who comes from Doncaster and who chairs Labour’s powerful ruling body the National Executive Committee, retweeted claims that the PM had not been suffering from coronavirus and that doctors had been forced to cover up his true condition.

After an inquiry from The Independent, Ms Fox locked her Twitter account, meaning it can only be read by a select group of followers.

Earlier, the newspaper reported that she had shared a claim that those who had treated Mr Johnson in a London hospital had been forced to sign the Official Secrets Act, and that two doctors who had refused had been sent home.

Ms Fox retweeted a post that read: “Dorset Eye are reporting that when the PM was admitted to hospital, all staff were required to sign the official secrets act. 2 doctors who disagreed with his diagnosis refused, and were sent home ‘on leave’. One of the doctors said ‘if he has Covid19 I am not a doctor.’”

The newspaper said that sources close to Ms Fox said she had retweeted the conspiracy theory by accident and that it had since been deleted.

They also pointed to a tweet she sent a week ago in which she said she wished the prime minister “well and hope he recovers soon”. In the same tweet, posted last Tuesday, she added that “now is not the time for nasty comments.”