Despite struggling with other questions at the end of his speech on adult learning, Johnson was in bullish mood when asked on Tuesday what advice he would give to others about recovering from Covid-19 and if he could reassure some of his worried MPs that he had fully recovered.“I am fitter than a butcher’s dog thanks basically to losing weight,” replied the prime minister, after saying that the phenomenon of “long Covid” clearly existed. “I hesitate to give anybody any advice but losing weight is a very good thing to do when you reach 17st 6lbs (110.7kg), as I did at the height of about 5ft 10in (177.8cm). It’s probably a good idea to lose weight and so that’s what I’ve done. I feel much, much better.”