Marriott West India Quay hotel cleared over Tottenham Hotspur FC 'food poisoning' claim

Marriott West India Quay, the hotel at the centre of the Tottenham Hotspur FC “food-poisoning” mystery has been exonerated.

Investigations into the hotel’s food – including the lasagne that was widely accused of causing the team’s illness - by the Health Protection Agency and Tower Hamlets Trading Standards and Environmental Health cleared the hotel today of any wrongdoing.

Tests showed the players were suffering from Norovirus, a viral form of gastroenteritis commonly known as Winter Vomiting Disease, which also induces diarrhoea.

Colin Perrins, head of Tower Hamlets Trading Standards and Environmental Health, said: “A thorough investigation into this incident was carried out. None of the results or findings indicated that food poisoning was the cause.”

Dr Alex Mellanby, consultant in Communicable Disease Control at the North East and Central London Health Protection Unit, added: "The only positive finding in this investigation identifies Norovirus as the cause of the outbreak. We do not believe that this outbreak was caused by food poisoning from the hotel."

Despite the widely-publicised allegations, a spokeswoman for Marriott said the company would not be seeking damages or taking any legal action.

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By Emily Manson

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