Elon Musk called one of the world's top lockdown advocates an 'utter tool' who does 'absurdly fake science' after he was caught breaking his own rules to meet his lover

• Elon Musk says Professor Neil Ferguson is a "tool" after admitting that he broke the rules of the lockdown he advocated for to meet in secret with his lover.
• Ferguson, a top advisor to the UK government whose work convinced the government to enforce a lockdown, resigned on Tuesday.
• The Telegraph broke the news that his married lover was visiting him at his London home, in violation of government rules.
• Musk also said: "This guy has caused massive strife to the world with his absurdly fake 'science'."
• Ferguson's work helped make the case for lockdowns around the world, but has been criticized since by many — including Musk — who think the measures taken are excessive.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Elon Musk labelled a top British scientist a "tool" and attacked his work after he was caught breaking lockdown to rendezvous with his married lover.

Professor Neil Ferguson, 52, leads a team at Imperial College London which published the paper that convinced the UK government to enforce a lockdown. His advice has also been cited by the White House and other national governments.

Ferguson on Tuesday resigned his role as a formal adviser to the UK government after a British newspaper revealed that he had been breaching the lockdown rules in his private life.

The Daily Telegraph revealed that Ferguson, a top government advisor, had allowed his lover, 38,-year-old Antonia Staats, to break lockdown and visit him at his London home during the crisis.

In a series of tweets on Tuesday night prompted by screengrabs of the Telegraph story, Musk went after Ferguson, calling him an "utter moron" and "tool."

"This guy has caused massive strife to the world with his absurdly fake 'science'," Musk tweeted.

Musk himself is an outspoken critic of coronavirus lockdowns, which he described recently as "fascist." He has repeatedly posted tweets suggesting that responses to the pandemic have been excessive or based on poor evidence.

Since Ferguson's models are based on predictions and hypothetical scenarios, it would be difficult to conclusively prove that any of their conclusions are "fake."

But it is certainly true that many epidemiologists have criticized Ferguson's work, as detailed in a recent profile of Ferguson by Business Insider.

Ferguson apologized for his actions in a statement published by The Telegraph.

He said: "I acted in the belief that I was immune, having tested positive for coronavirus, and completely isolated myself for almost two weeks after developing symptoms."

"I deeply regret any undermining of the clear messages around the continued need for social distancing to control this devastating epidemic. The Government guidance is unequivocal, and is there to protect all of us."