A junior doctor has been let off with a warning after making jokes about Jews being gassed.
Dr. Martin Whyte, a former executive member of the British Medical Association (BMA), was suspended in 2023 over a series of “utterly vile” tweets.
He had called for people to boycott Israel “out of spite” and claimed that videos questioning the Holocaust were “pretty convincing.”
The General Medical Council (GMC) concluded that while his posts were “grossly offensive,” they fell “just short of that which would be considered serious enough to pose a risk to public protection”.
An investigation committee heard that Dr. Whyte’s comments were not “intentionally antisemitic”.
He is currently employed by Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust as a specialist trainee in paediatrics and has received a formal warning from the medical regulator.
The warning states: “On 18 April 2018, 27 October 2018, and 23 November 2018, Dr. Whyte posted comments on Twitter (now known as X) which were grossly offensive.
“This conduct does not meet the standards required of a doctor. It risks bringing the profession into disrepute and must not be repeated.”
Dr Martin Whyte
Other posts brought to the attention of the GMC and BMA included Dr. Whyte joking about the”decomposing carcass of the Queen”.
He also referred to Conservatives as “b******,” adding that they should not be allowed to work as medics.
In one tweet about the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue attack, which killed 11 people and wounded six, Dr. Whyte wrote:
“hahaha zeig hail hahaha gas the jews hahaha just kidding but have you seen these YouTube videos about the holohoax they’re pretty convincing imo [in my opinion]…”
The BMA investigated the posts
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BMA
That same year, he tweeted: “Me: It’s important to represent Judaism and Jewish people fairly and respectfully in art.
Also me: Jew banker goblins.”
A year earlier, he had urged people to boycott Israel “out of spite.”
After the social media posts emerged, a BMA spokesperson condemned them as “totally unacceptable,’ confirming that Dr. Whyte had been removed from “any and all BMA business”.
In an email to members in 2023, the BMA reiterated that his comments were “totally unacceptable,” adding that there was “absolutely no place in the BMA for antisemitism.”
A GMC spokesperson said: “We carried out a full and thorough investigation into Dr. Martin Whyte’s social media posts. After hearing the evidence, an investigation committee found his posts were grossly offensive.
They decided a formal warning was necessary to uphold confidence in the profession. It will appear on the doctor’s online record for two years and must be disclosed to any potential employers.
“A warning is a formal, significant disciplinary action on a doctor’s registration.”
A BMA spokesperson added that Dr. Whyte would not be allowed to represent the BMA “in any elected office again.”
They said: “The BMA takes the conduct of its elected officials and staff incredibly seriously.
Dr. Whyte was immediately removed from any and all BMA business when the social media material came to light. This was followed by our own internal investigation, which made this permanent.
The decision about whether he can continue to practise as a doctor is a matter for the GMC, not the BMA.
However, we have taken the view that he should not be able to represent the BMA in any elected office again. We wish to reiterate that the BMA stands opposed to all forms of discrimination.”
A Campaign Against Antisemitism spokesman told GB News: “Every week there is some new outrage from the medical regulatory system. Is there any level of racism against Jewish people that the GMC would consider worthy of actual disciplinary action?
“If so, we have yet to see it. Antisemitism is at record highs in our society and regulators are totally asleep at the wheel. Another spectacular failure by the medical regulator.”