A video claiming to be from 1956 did not predict Covid-19
The video is modern and was made after the pandemic began. Read
Fact check
Social media
Fact checks of content undertaken as part of Full Fact’s work on the Third Party Fact Checking Programme with Facebook
Old faked picture of Obama and Bin Laden surfaces again
The picture has been edited. Read
Fact check
Stanley Johnson did write a novel called ‘The Virus’
The Prime Minister’s father wrote the book in 1982. Read
Fact check
MPs haven’t given themselves a £3,300 pay rise
A Facebook post claims New Zealand MPs took a 20% pay cut during the pandemic while UK MPs gave themselves a pay rise. Read
Fact check
A tube sign expressing solidarity between London and Manchester is not a real sign
The sign states in the top left corner that it is fake. Read
Fact check
Facebook post about falling flu and pneumonia deaths is wrong
The widely shared Facebook post contains a number of inaccuracies about mortality rates. Read
Fact check
MPs can only claim £25 a day for food if they stay overnight outside London or their constituency
A viral post on Twitter claimed they can claim this every day and that it amounts to over £800,000. It doesn’t. Read
Fact check
Health
PTFE in masks does not pose a health risk, unless you get it very hot
PTFE heated to high temperatures can cause sickness, but this is rare, and unlikely to be caused by normal mask-wearing. Read
Fact check
The inventor of PCR never said it wasn’t designed to detect infectious diseases
Rumours about the inventor of the process of PCR, which is used to test whether someone currently has Covid-19, have been spreading on social media. Read
Fact check
Dominic Raab did not say Covid-19 tests have a 93% false positive rate
Mr Raab was referring to a PHE report on testing at airports and seems to have misspoken when he mentioned false positives. Read
Fact check
Evidence you can rely on
Fact checking claims made by politicians, public figures and viral online content can give you the full picture backed by the evidence.
Subscribe to weekly email newsletters from Full Fact for updates on politics, immigration, health and more. Our fact checks are free to read but not to produce, so you will also get occasional emails about fundraising and other ways you can help. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information about how we use your data see our Privacy Policy.