Boris Johnson has said that primary school children in England SHOULD go back to school this week where possible.
After days of mounting pressure to keep schools closed, the Prime Minister appeared on the Andrew Marr show on Sunday and confirmed the Government's position.
He said: "Yes absolutely they should in the areas where schools are open."
Johnson added: "Schools are safe, it is very, very important to stress that. The threat, the risk, to kids, to young people is really very, very small indeed as the scientists continually attest. The risk to staff is very small."
The move has been criticised by many and the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) union, along with the Association of School and College Leaders, have made preliminary steps in legal proceedings.
UNISON has said the reopening of all schools in England should be delayed by two weeks to minimise the spread of the coronavirus.
Teaching unions have also not ruled out striking over plans to reopen schools as SAGE warns the coronavirus variant is highly unlikely to be brought under control if children go back to class as planned.
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North East Labour MPs and the North of Tyne Mayor have also signed an open letter to party leader Sir Keir Starmer and his shadow education team saying they should back calls for schools not to open from Monday except for vulnerable children and children of key workers.
Meanwhile, Boris Johnson was branded "deceitful" over his claims that classrooms were safe for children and their teachers.
Former North East teacher Daniel Kebede is now Senior Vice Chairman of the National Education Union. It and the NASUWT, has called for primary schools to shut and for teachers to move to remote learning from Monday as they believe this is the only way to protect public health in the face of rising coronavirus rates.
Asked to comment on the Prime Minister's interview, Mr Kebede said: "It was deceitful, there is no other word to label it, advising that schools are safe.
"The risk is not small in a classroom with 30 schoolchildren when one of them has Covid and the chances are you are going to catch it, particularly this new variant we're open to."
