No, COVID-19 and the WHO pandemic treaty are not psychological operations

Context

A video from the Jeremy Vine Show discussing leaked messages from Matt Hancock, the former U.K. health secretary during the pandemic, has been reshared widely by anti-vaxxers on Facebook. 

The leaked text messages show Matt Hancock suggesting they "frighten the pants off everyone" and to "deploy the new variant." The texts were revealed in March 2023. The episode originally aired in 2023 and shows Jeremy Vine talking to ex-police officer Graham Taylor.

In the video, Taylor comments about the COVID-19 pandemic and claims "all the conspiracy theories of the 2020s are turning out to be true." He then claims more people were dying of the flu than COVID-19. He also calls the lockdowns a psychological operation and later refers to it as "an exercise in population control."

The post on Facebook also links this to the WHO pandemic treaty. The post states that COVID-19 was a scam and says, "It was a psychological operation on the people of the country, and they want to do the SAME with the WHO PANDEMIC TREATY!." Anti-vaxxers on X (formerly Twitter) also shared the video back in 2023.

In fact

There is no evidence or basis to suggest the COVID-19 pandemic was a psychological operation, nor have any of the conspiracies been "proven true."

It is true leaked messages from Matt Hancock appear to show him saying he wanted to "frighten the pants off everyone with the new strain" in reference to COVID-19 and asked, "When do we deploy the new variant?" before announcing the COVID-19 variant the next day. The discussion appears to have been about when to announce the variant to ensure people complied with the rules. 

However, while Hancock may have used an exaggerated turn of phrase, it does not imply or suggest COVID-19 was a planned event, nor that the COVID-19 pandemic was a scam, fabricated, or psychological operation. It is insufficient to make such claims based on the leaked text messages. Furthermore, there is no credible evidence COVID-19 was planned or part of a population control plan, and these claims have been frequently debunked.

The World Health Organization (WHO) "pandemic treaty" has been a target of anti-vax conspiracy and speculation since its inception, and such conspiracists often exaggerate its proposals to amend the International Health Regulations (IHR) and the extent of its powers. 

The main goal of the pandemic treaty is to "foster an all of government and all of society approach, strengthening national, regional and global capacities and resilience to future pandemics." This includes enhancing international cooperation to improve aspects like alert systems and data-sharing. 

There is no evidence that the pandemic treaty is a "psyop," and a 2023 WHO publication for the "proposal for negotiating text" of the treaty mentions it will not remove sovereignty. The paper says, "States have, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the general principles of international law, the sovereign right to legislate and to implement legislation in pursuance of their health policies."

It is also not true more people died of the flu than COVID-19. Data from the U.K. shows COVID-19 has been the underlying cause in four times as many deaths as flu and pneumonia in England and Wales. Deaths from COVID-19 have been higher than flu deaths in any year since 1929. Global data recorded by Johns Hopkins University shows that over six million people died from COVID-19 between January 22, 2020 and October 3, 2023. 

Logically Facts has previously checked various claims about COVID-19 and the flu, including claims that COVID-19 is just the flu and that flu deaths were recorded as COVID-19, and found them to be false.

The verdict

The COVID-19 pandemic was deadly and not a psychological operation or exercise in population control. There is no evidence the WHO pandemic treaty is linked to a psychological operation against the people. Therefore, we have marked this claim as false.

The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a lot of potentially dangerous misinformation. For reliable advice on COVID-19, including symptoms, prevention, and available treatment, please refer to the World Health Organization or your national healthcare authority.