An MP was forced into an embarrassing public apology after joking about swine flu – as it was revealed a case had been confirmed in Worcestershire.
Erdington MP Siôn Simon made the joke on internet messaging service Twitter, shortly before Gordon Brown announced details of British cases.
Victims include a 41-year-old woman from Redditch.
Mr Simon, a skills minister in Mr Brown’s Government, repeated a joke originally made by the author of a satirical website which referred to Susan Boyle, the singer who became an international star after appearing on ITV show Britain’s Got Talent.
He said: “I’m not saying Susan Boyle caused swine flu. I’m just saying that nobody had swine flu, she sang on TV, people got swine flu.”
But he later apologised on Twitter, saying: “Earlier I repeated a joke that was in poor taste, which I now regret. I apologise wholeheartedly for any distress or embarrassment caused.”
Fellow Birmingham MP John Hemming said Mr Simon would not win any talent contests himself.
Mr Hemming (Lib Dem Yardley) said: “A colleague on the city council runs a comedy club, but I don’t think he’s going to hire Siôn.”
Mr Simon said: “I repeated someone else’s whimsical comment, which was inappropriately light-hearted about a very serious subject. I now regret it, which is why I have apologised.”
Susan Boyle, aged 47, from West Lothian, amazed judges on Britain’s Got Talent with her rendition of I Dreamed a Dream from the musical Les Miserables, which made her the favourite for the programme’s £100,000 prize.
Politicians are increasingly using Twitter as a way of communicating directly with voters and receiving feedback.
