Piers Morgan slammed as 'hypocrite' for getting Covid-19 test in 48 hours despite NHS workers waiting in queue
Piers Morgan has been heavily criticized for getting tested for coronavirus within 48 hours of announcing he had started to display "a mild symptom" of the deadly virus. The 55-year-old said over the weekend that he was having a COVID-19 test on the advice of his doctor.
His test result came out on Monday, April 4, and it turned out to be negative. However, it is not clear if he was tested by the NHS or he went for a private test.
Morgan updated about the same to his fans and followers in a tweet as he wrote: “UPDATE: My COVID-19 test was negative. I was advised to take the test by my doctor after developing possible coronavirus symptoms and was entitled to do so as a Govt-designated essential worker. I'll be back on @GMB as soon as my doctor advises I'm OK to return to work.”
However, this did not go down well with some people as they called him out for being able to get tested for the COVID-19 instantly despite the fact that several NHS workers are still in queue to get tested. Some also questioned his status as an essential worker amid the outbreak as one commented: “Essential worker???? My daughter is a nurse - she is an essential worker."
Morgan responded to that tweet defending himself, “Your daughter is an infinitely more essential worker than me. I was drawing no equivalence, just explaining the Govt's designated all journalists & broadcasters covering the coronavirus crisis as essential workers too, which is why we can get a test if we show symptoms."
However, his reply could not convince people on the internet as one tweeted, "So you’re justifying you getting a test but 2 weeks ago you questioned why the royal family was getting them ahead of nurses."
Not just the common people, even Lord Sugar slammed the ‘Good Morning Britain’ show host and questioned how he got a coronavirus test faster than NHS workers. The 73-year-old business magnate also branded Morgan as a “hypocrite”.
“Have I missed something? Like the Govn 'Masochist bill'. According to @piersmorgan, he is a Govn- designated essential worker. Does he mean the Govn see him essential to slag them off every day? There are other presenters to step in @gmb he is certainly not essential,” Sugar tweeted, referring to Ben Shephard, who has stepped in temporarily to fill in for Morgan on the morning show.
“@piersmorgan not a Govn-designated essential worker. There're Nurses, Doctors, Police, Army, train, and truck drivers. He deprived real essential workers of a test. If this was Hugh Grant, Meghan, or other of his enemies like me. He would be howling from the rooftops. HYPOCRITE,” he wrote.
Earlier in March, Morgan hit out at the royal family and slammed the authorities for providing instant testing for the privileged ones but not for the NHS workers. The ‘Serial Killer with Piers Morgan’ host slammed the authorities after it was confirmed that Prince Charles had contracted the virus.
“I don't begrudge Prince Charles & Camilla having COV-19 tests given he is the heir to the throne. But there are legitimate questions to be asked about why members of the royal family can instantly get them but NHS workers can't,” Morgan said in a tweet at that time.