Nigel Farage has refused to say whether Donald Trump is irresponsible for claiming that taking paracetamol during pregnancy could cause autism in babies, despite medical professionals saying it is “perfectly safe”.
Speaking on LBC, the Reform UK leader said he had “no idea” if the US president was right in his claim, adding that “we were told thalidomide was a very safe drug and it wasn’t”.
Asked if he would side with medical experts who say it is dangerous to make the link, Farage said: “I wouldn’t, when it comes to science, I don’t side with anybody.
“I don’t side with anybody because science is never settled, and we should remember that.”
When asked whether it was irresponsible to make that link as US president, and that a large study on 2.4 million children had found no link, Farage said: “That’s an opinion he’s got. It’s not one that I necessarily share. But I mean, honestly, I’ve no idea.”
Farage was also asked about Trump’s baseless claim last year that Haitian immigrants in the US were eating cats and dogs, which he did not accept was unproven.
He instead suggested, providing no evidence, that eastern European migrants were taking swans from Royal Parks and carp from ponds across the UK to eat – a claim the Royal Parks has rejected.
Nigel Farage says he had “no idea” if the US president was right in claiming that taking paracetamol during pregnancy could cause autism in babies
Farage’s comments on paracetamol come after Trump said there had been a “meteoric rise” in cases of autism and suggested that the drug, known by the brand name Tylenol in the United States, is a potential cause.
Trump said the painkillers should not be taken during pregnancy, suggesting pregnant women should “tough it out” and also raised unfounded concerns about vaccines.
In response to Farage’s interview on LBC, Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said people should “trust the NHS, trust the medical advice, and if Mr Farage wants to follow President Trump down that road, that’s a matter for him.”
Health secretary Wes Streeting also criticised Farage and referred to Dr Aseem Malholtra, who suggested at a Reform conference that Covid vaccines were linked to the King’s and the Princess of Wales’ cancers.
In a post on X, he wrote: “No idea and no backbone. This is a man whose health adviser claimed at Reform’s conference that the covid vaccine gave the Royal Family cancer.
“Anti-science, anti-reason, anti-NHS. Farage is the snake oil salesman of British politics and it’s time to stop buying his rubbish.”
In response to Farage’s comment, Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney said “this is just recklessness”.
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey responded with a post on X, saying: “Trump’s America, don’t let it become Farage’s Britain.”
On Tuesday, Wes Streeting also said no one should “pay any attention whatsoever to what Donald Trump says about medicine.”
The health secretary’s comments align with NHS England, which states on its website: “Paracetamol is the first choice of painkiller if you’re pregnant. It’s commonly taken during pregnancy and does not harm your baby.”
Speaking on Tuesday, NHS England’s chief midwifery Officer Kate Brintworth reiterated that sentiment.
“The use of paracetamol in pregnancy is perfectly safe,” she said. “I completely understand that many women will be feeling anxious and worried.
“Hearing news like this makes them think ‘am I doing the right thing?’ But I want to reassure them they are.
“We’ve done extensive research, we really understand the science behind this, and there is no evidence at all that paracetamol is anything other than safe.”
She added that women who have been prescribed paracetamol should “keep taking it” because medicine is only prescribed in pregnancy “for very good reasons”.
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