Boris Johnson calls EU ruling that obesity can be a disability 'utterly ridiculous'

Opposed: Boris calling the ruling 'utterly ridiculous' (Picture: John Stillwell/PA)

19 December 2014

London Mayor Boris Johnson has slammed an EU ruling that obesity can be considered a disability as "utterly ridiculous".

Taking part in an open Q&A session on Twitter, Mr Johnson was asked whether or not he thought obesity should be classified as a disability.

The question, posed by Twitter user Michael Comninos, was in reference to a recent ruling by the European Court of Justice which concluded that obesity could constitute a disability if it hindered “full and effective participation” at work.

In response to the question, the Mayor wrote: “It is totally and utterly ridiculous to class this as a disability. It is an insult to those who are truly disabled #askboris @mikecomn.”

Many fellow Twitter users seemed to support the Mayor, with Mr Comninos replying: “Thank you - in complete agreement.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">It is totally and utterly ridiculous to class this as a disability. It is an insult to those who are truly disabled <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/askboris?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2931646-https://twitter.com/hashtag/askboris?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#askboris</a> <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/mikecomn" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2931646-https://twitter.com/mikecomn" data-vars-event-id="c23">@mikecomn</a>— Boris Johnson (@MayorofLondon) <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/MayorofLondon/status/545898792839823360" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2931646-https://twitter.com/MayorofLondon/status/545898792839823360" data-vars-event-id="c23">December 19, 2014</a>

However not everyone on the social media site supported Mr Johnson’s comments, with many highlighting the many different reasons for obesity.

Phil Simpson wrote: “@MayorOfLondon As with so many other things, you clearly have no idea what you are talking about.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/MayorofLondon" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2931646-https://twitter.com/MayorofLondon" data-vars-event-id="c23">@MayorofLondon</a> As with so many other things, you clearly have no idea what you are talking about.— Phil Simpson (@philsimpson61) <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/philsimpson61/status/545899881685336065" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2931646-https://twitter.com/philsimpson61/status/545899881685336065" data-vars-event-id="c23">December 19, 2014</a>

The EU ruling, which was made yesterday, was branded a “can of worms” that could allow grossly overweight people to demand special furniture and even parking spaces at work.

It follows the sacking of Danish nursery worker Karsten Kaltoft, who was reportedly so fat he could not bend down to tie his shoelaces.

Firms across Europe will be bound by the court’s ruling that obesity is a disability if it “hinders the full and effective participation of the person concerned in professional life on an equal basis with other workers”.

Boris Johnson calls EU ruling that obesity can be a disability 'utterly ridiculous'

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