Leo Benedictus

Journalist

Leo joined Full Fact in January 2020. For 15 years, he worked freelance as a feature writer for the Guardian, Prospect, the New Scientist and others, making maps of immigration, explaining citizens’ assemblies and debunking superfoods. He has a fondness for science and statistics. He also writes novels.

1 April 2025

How many schools ban mobile phones?

The data we have suggests most schools in England don’t allow pupils to use their phones—although the types of ban vary, and there is evidence that they are often not being followed.

18 March 2025

No, Pfizer CEO did not say it planned to halve the world’s population

A video of the company’s CEO has been altered to make it sound like he announced plans to reduce the world’s population by 50%.

12 March 2025

Wes Streeting overstated the number of people on the NHS waiting list under the Conservatives

There were actually 6.4 million people on the NHS England waiting list last July, not 7.6 million as the health secretary claimed last month. That was the number of cases.

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6 March 2025

The Covid-19 virus does exist

A post on Instagram features a woman making incorrect claims about the existence of Covid-19.

20 February 2025

The government has not spent £8 billion on ‘woke projects’

The figure of £8 billion represents the total annual budget for UK Research and Innovation. Funding for projects that the TaxPayers’ Alliance has described as “woke” totals £10.4 million.