The anecdote made the front page of all British media on Wednesday May 6 in the morning. Neil Ferguson, the star epidemiologist of Imperial College, a prominent member of SAGE, the Johnson government's scientific committee, had to resign the night before, following revelations from the Telegraph. The newspaper ensures that it did not respect the rules of confinement to the establishment of which, by its models, it had strongly contributed.
AT "At least twice", specifies the conservative daily, a 38-year-old woman crossed London from her home south of the capital to " spend time " with the 51-year-old scientist. However, since March 23, the government recommends to the British to avoid all displacements "Not essential" outside their home.
"I acted thinking I was immune"
A good communicator, very educationalist, Neil Ferguson has risen to the rank of a public figure since the start of the pandemic. Very present in the media, this specialist in mathematics applied to biology, recognized as one of the very first in his discipline, did not hesitate to respond to requests, and to recommend, regularly, the importance of " social distancing ".
Prime Minister Boris Johnson turned around on the basis of his models in late March. Supporter until then of a certain "laissez-faire" in the face of the new virus, he had finally opted for the containment of the population, aligning his policy with that of most other European countries. Ferguson and his team estimated that, in the absence of population containment, at least 250,000 people were at risk of dying in the country.
"I acknowledge having committed an error in judgment", said the scientist at Telegraph. Before explaining:
"So I resigned from SAGE (the government's scientific committee). I acted on the assumption that I was immune, having tested positive for coronavirus, and having been completely isolated for at least two weeks after developing symptoms. I deeply regret having undermined the official message of social distancing, which is unequivocal and intended to protect us all. "
The UK, the most mourning country in Europe
Ferguson is not the first of its kind to fall from its pedestal: in early April, the Scottish government's chief medical adviser, Dr. Catherine Calderwood, had to resign after spending two weekends in her second home, located north of Edinburgh, in violation of containment rules.
The epidemiologist's resignation comes, at any rate, at a bad time for the Johnson government, forced to justify its choices, while the United Kingdom passed the 29,000 mark linked directly to Covid-19 on Tuesday, becoming , if we stick to official figures, the most bereaved country in Europe by the pandemic.
The national scientific community was divided between affliction and anger on Wednesday. “Neil Ferguson is a good modeler and an independent (scientist). He broke the rules a month ago. So why this “no info” Did it come out the day that the death toll exceeded that of Italy? (…) Who else is going to be designated as a scapegoat? " even wondered on Twitter Anthony Costello, professor of public health at University College London, and former collaborator of the World Health Organization.
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