Former prime minister Boris Johnson has told the Covid-19 inquiry that children paid “a huge, huge price to protect the rest of society” when schools were closed during the pandemic. Giving evidence on Wednesday, he said it was “an awful, awful thing” and expressed regret that no alternative solution could be found.
Johnson also acknowledged that the system for awarding GCSE and A-level results in England in summer 2020 “let kids down” and was “bitterly disappointing” for students. The remarks come as the inquiry examines how decisions affecting children were made during the crisis.
The former prime minister clashed with earlier evidence from then-education secretary Gavin Williamson, who claimed he was often blindsided by announcements on school closures. Johnson said he did not recall the details, describing Williamson’s claims as “a bit paradoxical”. Nonetheless, he praised Williamson’s efforts as “heroic”.
Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Caroline Voaden criticised that characterisation, calling it “an insult to the true heroes of the Covid pandemic: the teachers and doctors, nurses and key workers”. Save the Children UK said the inquiry had shown that children’s rights were absent from decision-making, and called for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child to be embedded in UK law.
