10 h. ago Covid inquiry live: children paid ‘huge price’ to protect rest of society in pandemic, says Johnson

The former prime minister says method for adjudicating exam results ‘must have been bitterly disappointing to students’Former prime minister Boris Johnson tries to give the inquiry context around the decision making on the closure of educational settings. He says:Don’t forget that we didn’t know the effect this disease had on kids. We didn’t know much about the transmissibility of the disease. There were all sorts of things that were simply unknown and difficult to plan for. And the thing was moving very fast.And from the point of view of No 10, we were focused very much on trying to stave off, trying to avoid an appalling public health crisis, and we were focused on getting enough ventilators, on getting enough PPE, trying to avoid a significant number of casualties, and I think it’s important for the inquiry to focus, to remember that at the time that the school closures were first mentioned, they were seen as something you put in at the peak of the pandemic, and we didn’t think w...

Politics

11 h. ago Covid inquiry live: Boris Johnson questioned over impact of pandemic on children

The former prime minister is appearing at the UK’s Covid-19 inquiryClair Dobbin KC is questioning the former prime minister. She is counsel to the Covid Inquiry. She leads its work in Northern Ireland and, separately, its work in relation to children.She has opened by asking about Gavin Williamson’s evidence which suggested there had been very little preparation for the closure of schools. She says his evidence was that “he didn’t seek assessment of the impact of school closures, and nor did he seek to develop planning for mass school closures because, and these were the words he used in his oral evidence, the steer I was hearing – whether it was in cabinet or anything else – was to keep things open, not about closing things.” Continue reading...

Politics

12 h. ago Boris Johnson gives Covid Inquiry evidence on decisions he made as PM

The former Prime Minister Boris Johnson will face questions from the Covid-19 Inquiry about late lockdowns and a lack of national preparation for remote learning

Politics

32 h. ago Government could have been ‘more liberal’ on outdoor time during Covid – Whitty

Professor Sir Chris Whitty was being asked about the impact of the pandemic on children and young people.

Politics

3 w. ago Covid inquiry hears lockdowns led to increase in kids’ suffering and abuse

Chairwoman Baroness Heather Hallett said the pandemic’s impact on children and young people had been 'severe' with some kids being subjected to 'grievous harm' by carers during lockdown

Events

3 w. ago Covid inquiry to shift focus to pandemic’s impact on children and young people

Schools were closed to most children in the pandemic amid fears over spread of the coronavirus.

Events