Wakefield Council apologises for accidental tweet criticising government advice to panic buyers

Wakefield Council has apologised after a tweet criticising the government's response to coronavirus was apparently mistakenly posted on its account.
County Hall in Wakefield.County Hall in Wakefield.
County Hall in Wakefield.

The tweet was posted on Saturday afternoon in response to a BBC News article, reporting the government's advice for the public to "shop responsibly".

It suggested panic buyers were "feeling threatened" and "taking steps to ensure their survival" before accusing the government of failing to "reassure" the public.

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The tweet was signed off with a blunt "Engage your PR people".

The tweet was posted in error on Saturday afternoon.The tweet was posted in error on Saturday afternoon.
The tweet was posted in error on Saturday afternoon.

The post has now been deleted, but the council said on Monday morning that the tweet did not reflect its view.

In a further social media post it said it had "taken steps to make sure nothing like this happens again".

The original message appeared to split opinion.

Alan Hancock was critical of the authority, saying: "I feel for the people of Wakefield if this is their council’s attitude toward the problem. What could be more reassuring than “there’s more than enough to go around”?

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Jennie Rigg however, appeared to agree with the sentiment of the original post, saying: "Shame, it's a damn good tweet."

Andrew Balchin, Wakefield Council’s acting chief executive, said: "We apologise for any offence caused.

"These are absolutely not the views of the council and we have taken steps to try and prevent this happening again."

Local Democracy Reporting Service