Belle Gibson: 'Wellness blogger' who made false cancer cure claims hit with huge fine

Claim: Belle Gibson lied about curing cancer and promising to donate her profits to charity
Michael Howie|Jessica Morgan28 September 2017

An Australian cookbook author who falsely said she beat cancer through healthy eating has been fined £240,000 for misleading consumers by lying about her charitable donations.

The judge had ruled in March that Belle Gibson’s deceptive claims of donating the proceeds from the sales of The Whole Pantry and a related app constituted unconscionable conduct under Australian consumer law.

The book and app were withdrawn and now Federal Court Justice Debra Mortimer has ordered Gibson to pay a total of A$410,000 (£240,000) for five contraventions of the law relating to false claims that the proceeds would go to various charities.

The judge said the 25-year-old had been “cavalier about the truth”, unconcerned about representations she had made and “prepared to tell outright lies”.

Ms Gibson had built a public profile since 2013 around her claim through her book and social media that she had beaten brain cancer at the age of 20 by healing herself naturally.

She admitted in 2015 that she never had cancer.

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