Jennifer O’Connell: We do not elect politicians so they can pass the buck on Covid
You might have fairness on your side, but you get nowhere in this country without a lobby
OECD modelling suggests the 2020 closures already reduced children’s lifetime earning potential by 3%. The longer it goes on, the more pronounced the effect. Disadvantaged and vulnerable students suffer most. Photograph: Getty Images
Here are some of the things deemed essential enough to continue at Level 5 lockdown: elective laser eye surgery, bike rental, dry cleaning, takeaway burritos. Several categories of construction. You can get in your car right now and drive to a shop to buy a scented candle or a designer shower mat.
Not essential – though “central” and a “top priority” – is the return to school for the majority of the country’s one million children.