THREE cheers to the vast majority of heads in England who opened schools for kids in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 today.
We know it will have been a tough decision. Teaching trade unions — which want to keep schools closed for political reasons — have been breathing down their necks.
But it was the right one.
No time with teachers between mid-March and September would be educationally devastating for all children — but particularly those in poorer families.
And with kids stuck at home millions of parents can’t go back to work.
Yes, there’s an element of risk: it will always be impossible to guarantee the health of every single Brit.
But top scientists have thrown their weight behind the Government’s decision, citing convincing evidence that children don’t play much of a role in the transmission of coronavirus.
And with sensible social distancing measures in place, keeping classrooms safe should be eminently possible.
Thousands of brilliant teachers are longing to get back to the job they love. Let’s hope for a full reopening ASAP.
Air headed
THE Government’s 14 day quarantine for Brits returning from abroad is half-baked, illogical — and could have catastrophic long-term consequences for this country.
It will be the nail in the coffin for our tourism, aviation and hospitality industries. All of which are already severely scarred by 10 weeks of lockdown.
But it also grossly undermines the idea of a global, outward looking post-Brexit Britain.
Brexiteers rightly laughed at Remoaners who shrieked that our thriving banking and financial services industries would move abroad if we left the EU.
But if we close ourselves off to international business because of the virus, their hysterical predictions could actually come true.
Of course the last thing we want is the country flooded with infected tourists.
But health checks at airports would be a much better way to keep Brits safe.
Act by region
TOP scientist Professor Peter Openshaw has the right idea: the Government should lift lockdown restrictions by region.
Yes, the Prime Minister might feel uncomfortable singling out a specific town or city for draconian restrictions.
But the economy must come before political niceties. And shutting down businesses in Cornwall because of a minor new outbreak in Newcastle would be economically bonkers.
France — with a population comparable to the UK — introduced “red” and “green” zones when restrictions were first eased on May 17. Two weeks on, deaths across the country are still falling.
It’s time Britain followed suit.
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