Northern Ireland Health Minister Robin Swan is suing singer Van Morrison for defamation, Northern Ireland newspaper reports Belfast Telegraph. The 76-year-old artist described the minister as “extremely dangerous” and “a fraud” due to his handling of the Corona pandemic.
The singer made his comments about Swan, among other things, during a dinner at an elegant Belfast hotel in June. And he was angry that his concert was canceled due to Corona’s measures. Morrison also described the minister as a prankster in an interview.
Morrison is known as an outspoken critic of the measures taken by the Irish government in response to the pandemic. The singer performed three songs about the pandemic in 2020, in which he stated that the Irish government is taking away the freedoms of citizens. According to Swann, the songs are dangerous because Morrison does not scientifically prove his claims.
In a statement, Morrison described the songs with titles such as Born to be free employment No more closuresParody, Comedy, Humor and Satire. Later, however, he repeated in a video message the words that now lead to Swann’s defamation charges.
It is likely that the first hearing of the case will not be until early 2022. The minister had already brought the case in June, but the British media is only reporting it this weekend.
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