Pete Evans slams former MasterChef judge Matt Preston for backing masks

Controversial celebrity chef Pete Evans has taken a swipe at former MasterChef judge Matt Preston for urging Australians to be COVID-19 safe.

Pete Evans talks to anti-vax activist Sherri Tenpenny about the mandating of masks.

Controversial celebrity chef Pete Evans has taken a swipe at former MasterChef judge Matt Preston for urging Australians to be COVID-19 safe and wear a mask.

The former My Kitchen Rules judge slammed a Victorian government advertisement showing Matt Preston dining at a closed restaurant, urging Victorians to wear a mask to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.

In his Instagram post, Evans said the ad is “demeaning and disgraceful” and wearing a mask does “f..k all” to prevent the spread of the virus.

“This ad has only enabled the govt to extend its lockdown in Victoria by spreading misinformation,” he said.

“I would have hoped that the people that appeared in these ads would have explored the science that pertains to wearing a mask.”

Evans’ view is not shared by the majority of Australia’s medical bodies, which claim wearing a mask does help prevent the spread of the virus.

His latest anti-lockdown tirade comes after he shared an interview with a prominent US anti-vaxxer, who likened the pressure to wear a mask during the coronavirus pandemic to “psychological warfare” akin to children spying on their parents in Nazi Germany.

Evans posted the chat with Sherri Tenpenny to his 271,000 followers on Instagram on Sunday, during which the American claimed mandatory face mask laws were a step toward “subjugation” of the public.

Tenpenny, an osteopathic physician who supports the theory that flu vaccinations can cause autism, said masks and social distancing were being used as a tool to “separate us” and had turned the community against each other.

“This is the same psychological effect that they did with the brown shirt movement in Hitler times,” she said.

“When they convinced all of these kids to spy on their parents and report them if they were saying something against the propaganda of the political party.

“I feel the mask is the first step of subjugation — they are forcing you to do something against your will that does nothing for the greater good.”