This is a piece I wrote back in 2019 after what became known as #Punchgate and the controversy around the misinformation that Laura Kuenssberg circulated.

I was the guy in yellow with the push bike outside the Leeds General Infirmary last Monday evening. The shouting cyclist, the labour activist, engaging Matt Hancock as he left the hospital; but definitely not punching anyone, especially his advisor. I am a Professor and my office at the nearby university is only a few hundred metres away from the hospital. I also joined the Labour Party early this year because I spent some time analysing the different political parties and realised this was a crucial moment for our country. I spend my time teaching and researching how we can create a better world where we tackle the climate emergency and social injustice. I have recently published a book celebrating examples of communities trying to build a better world.

I’m writing this article because I want to put the record straight about exactly what happened, but also because I’m deeply embarrassed about how angry I was in public, especially outside a hospital which should be a place of calm, dignity and healing. I also don’t want anyone else to go through the personal hurt and risk that the misinfiormation and allegations around something like #punchgate can create.

At just after 4pm I was heading home, getting my bike from the store when I received a message from a friend saying that the Secretary for Health was at the hospital. I was on a tight deadline to get my children from an after school club. But I wanted to add my voice as a citizen concerned about the NHS. Many people I know work in the health profession and I get an insiders view about how it is being pushed to the brink in spite of their amazing efforts every day.

When I arrived at the hospital I had no particular plan. I found myself standing on my own wondering if it was all a joke. Then I bumped into two other people who said they were also waiting for Matt Hancock. There was no flash mob taxied in by the Labour Party as some claimed. It was thoroughly underwhelming. At that moment Mr Hancock walked out of the main hospital entrance.

I’m an experienced public speaker, but I am the first to admit that I wasn’t at my best. In the heat of the moment I shouted at him that he wasn’t welcome in the hospital, the city, or the country. My intention was to express that Conservative policies were not welcome. I am deeply embarrassed that I said somebody was not welcome, or made anyone feel unsafe. But at that moment, like many people in this country, I was overcome with anger, frustration and fear about what’s happening to our country. Outside the hospital all these emotions came to a head in sheer exasperation about what might happen to us, and our children’s future, if we wake up to a Conservative majority on Friday.

I regret my unfocused shouting when I should have said something much calmer and more measured. However, it’s what came next that mattered. #punchgate. This became a bigger moment after there was a misunderstanding which many of you will have seen on the video clip. As I was pointing my finger at the car as it drove away and looking in the other direction, Matt Hancock‘s adviser, also not paying attention, walked into my hand. Almost instantly reports started to circulate that I had punched him.

The terrifying thing for me is that if somebody had not captured the whole thing on their phone and uploaded it onto the Internet I could now be subject to police interrogation, legal proceedings about assaulting a government official, having my career and reputation thrown into question, and possibly facing a custodial sentence. What is upsetting for an ordinary citizen is that the media and politicians can use you as a pawn and circulate misinformation to their own advantage.

I have no idea how events unfolded after Matt Hancock’s car pulled away. But within minutes a BBC reporter came up to me and asked if I knew anything about who threw the punch. This seemed a ridiculous question. The reporter showed us the tweet from a senior BBC journalist saying that somebody had allegedly punched Mr Hancock’s advisor. What scares and confuses me is the rapid way that this misinformation was circulated widely from the Conservative party to the media and then out to the public, as fact. I immediately sent two short tweets to clarify that I had been present at the alleged incidence and that no punching had happened. I jumped on my bike and went home.

I am writing this because I want to set the record straight, not only in terms of what happened, but also in terms of wanting to apologise for being so angry in public. I want to help be part of a safer country, one where we can all live together and also tackle the huge challenges ahead. But I am really worried about where things might be going with this election. I have analysed the manifestos of the two main parties in detail. Based on my professional expertise, it’s clear that the Conservative manifesto is deeply unsafe - in terms of how it will treat the health and social care system, how it will increase divisions in housing and education, how it will allow large corporations to control the economy, asset strip public services, and create more privatisation, precarious jobs and pollution. Most terrifyingly of all, they don’t have any credible plan to tackle the urgent climate and nature crises when we have only one term of office left to take decisive action.

None of the other parties are perfect, but we have to do everything we can to stop this unsafe future unfolding on Friday and vote tactically. Whatever happens in this election, I have made a promise to myself not to be part of the anger and lies that are becoming normalised. No more #punchgates. I want a safe, green and happy future, for the many not just the few.