Ashfield MP Lee Anderson apologises to doctor for 'misleading' strike tweet

The BBC reported that in a since deleted tweet on October 6, Mr Anderson responded to a Mail Online article that reported Dr Dolphin had ‘boasted of charging the NHS for a strike cover shift’.

The BBC said: “A tweet from Dr Dolphin on that day suggests that ‘some commentators’ had not understood that he, as a consultant, had been covering for striking junior doctors.

"He had not been on strike himself on this occasion.”

Mr Anderson, who is the Conservtive Party deputy chairman, has now published an apology on his Facebook page.

He posted: On October 6, 2023 I shared a link on X to a Mail Online article entitled ‘Militant union leader at the heart of doctors strikes is a Labour activist who boasted of charging the NHS for a strike cover shift.

"I accept that my words were misleading as the subject in question Dr Tom Dolphin was not on strike on the date of the shift in question but was simply covering a shift as a consultant for junior doctors who were on strike on August 11, 2023.

"I would like to offer my sincerest apologies to Dr Dolphin for any distress upset caused.

"I will also like to add that I understand that Dr Dolphin actually donated his pay for the covered shift which I believe was £1,870 to the British Medical Association strike fund.

"And whilst I do not agree with the strikes I want to go on the record to say that I think it is a very unselfish act on the part of Dr Dolphin to put his money into something he strongly believes in.

"I will make the same contribution to compensate the upset I may have caused Dr Dolphin.”

The BBC reported that Dr Dolphin had accepted Mr Anderson’s apology, saying: "A very gracious apology, thank you Lee Anderson.”

Talks aimed at ending the ongoing dispute between doctors and the Govenment over pay – which has led to a series of strikes this year – remain ongoing.