Scientists are trying to assess the impact opening schools would have on the coronavirus infection rate, the chief medical officer said today.
Professor Chris Whitty said scientists are working out whether reopening schools would have an impact on the COVID-19 infection rate - the R value.
He said they are 'getting closer' to having a 'narrower range of uncertainty' on the impact.
But he said scientists do not yet have 'direct data' that will help them.
He also warned that when the lockdown is eased there will have to be 'some difficult choices' made and that the reopening of schools will be one of them.
Speaking at the Downing Street press conference on Monday (April 27), Prof Whitty said if you have schools open, it does contribute to the infection rate.
“If you close schools, the R goes down, it was part of the collection of things that were done in March to try and pull the R from where it was, near three, to where it is now, below one", he added.
He said if schools were reopened now, that we would 'lose some of the benefit that we have currently got'.
But that 'we do not yet have direct data that really help us' in assessing the impact.
“Whilst I think it remains the case that the contribution of children at school is probably less than, for example, flu, we do think it certainly contributes", Prof Whitty said.
“What we are trying to work out is what proportion of the R it contributes and therefore, if children went back to school, how much closer to one – and that’s in a bad way – would we be and could it even tip us above one.”
He said there is 'quite a debate around the world in science' as to what contribution children make to the spread of coronavirus.
But unfortunately, there is currently 'no clear answer' because COVID-19 is a new disease.
Prof Whitty said scientific advisers would present a range of options to ministers about easing lockdown measures and 'difficult choices' would have to be made.
“What we are trying to do, in very short order, is try and give a feel for what are the combinations of different things which actually still keep the R below one, which is an absolutely critical thing, but allow opening up of different bits of society", he said.
“There is no perfect solution where we are going to end up being able to do all the things that people want and, at the same time, keep R below one.
“So, there are going to have to be some very difficult choices between different things, all of which ideally all of us would love to open up, but we can’t do them all.
“Therefore, there will have to be some difficult choices, and choices around schools clearly will be one of those."
All schools across the country were closed in March as the government moved to slow down the coronavirus pandemic, though some remained open for key workers and the most vulnerable children.
The government have been grilled in recent days as to when they might reopen.
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab told the BBC's Andrew Marr programme on Sunday morning that it was 'inconceivable' that schools would re-open without measures in place to stop the spread of the disease.
He said the government would be led by scientists.
