What does Johnson mean by "safe"?

Sydney just about to make mask wearing in public areas eg shopping centres museums etc compulsory with s hefty fine for non compliance,
My son recently did a full workout I made the gym wearing a mask to prove it’s no big deal. Proud of him.

kwest

My grandchildren go to an excellent school. Wyedean on the English Welsh border. From today they have register at 9am on Zoom. They will follow a full school day apart from PE when they can choose their own exercise. Usual break times and lunch times.
They each have their bedrooms set up with a school area and a sleeping area. Their mother has also put different mood lighting into each area to emphasize the difference.
She has set up an office in her bedroom and they will all disappear to their own work places for the school day and meet up for break and lunchtimes.
The teachers have put so much effort in over the past year and continue to do so.

Not everyone has such a privileged environment. What about the family of six children sharing bedrooms in a high rise flat? What about the families with no access to the internet?
Without attending school these children would have no education.

Safe in his eyes are having the children out the way so that parents can go to work and make money. It’s all about the money in his eyes. That is the most important thing. The health of the economy is more important to him than the health of us mere humans

Lemongrove

In supermarkets there are constant cleaning staff, staff are protected, and one doesn’t normally spend up to 6 hours in the same spot in the supermarket close to 30 other people and it’s your choice as a consumer to go there !!

My daughter teaches reception, 30 little 4/5 year olds ! No PPE, very little social distancing, dangerous for both staff and children !

Her partner teaches year 5, last term she was told to keep the windows open, again no masks, her entire year group was at home the last week of term due to positive tests, not her though, she had to go to school each day and cover all staff, mixing all the bubbles and again no PPE

To add to that, they live with us, we have 6 our household, including two who are vulnerable

The initial post by ReadyMeals says it all imo.

Let’s be very very clear here, schools never actually closed, nor will they fully close, they will be open for vulnerable children and key workers children Teachers will be working

Finally, I would add in the last 10 days I have seen articles stating both a 6 year and an 8 year old were admitted to hospital after testing positive for COVID and both extremely unwell, sadly the 8 year passed away. Please don’t put in that young children cannot spread this virus, because frankly no one knows and it’s looking highly likely that the new mutation affects all ages and can be caught and spread by any age !

The government as usual will squarely blame education. If they want schools open why haven't they made vaccination priority for the staff. Vaccinate the exam year groups as well.They can they worry about revision rather than daily covid tests!

I am not a fan of Kier Starmer but I think he’s right. We need a national lockdown right now. It’s the only thing that works. I don’t believe a child’s education is more important than my life. This government has had a half hearted approach since the start of the pandemic and it has cost many lives. We need a decisive government not this shower of incompetent idiots who, by being too late to act on EVERYTHING have increased the pandemic rather than control it. They need to shut down education right now or this disease will tear through the entire country. What is wrong with them? It’s so frustrating and makes me angry.

Just to add I work in schools as well mostly KS1. Schools have not closed and all the staff are working harder than ever to try and keep things "normal". Constant changes issued which are all last minute and usually vague are put into place and dealt with but it is exhausting and I'm sure nobody was able to rest during christmas holidays.It is easier in lots of ways to be in the school building but the way the virus is spreading just shows that being in school isnt helping.

Schools should be closed as a measure yo break the cycle. Whilst young children may not succumb to the virus but they can spread it via touch. Parents will congregate perhaps not in sight of the school gate. How many parents join up to walk together and chat with no masks. I am fed up seeing this, usually mums with school children and others in pushchairs walking side by side and thanking me for stepping onto the road to let them pass!! Schools should be closed.

PenE

The government as usual will squarely blame education. If they want schools open why haven't they made vaccination priority for the staff. Vaccinate the exam year groups as well.They can they worry about revision rather than daily covid tests!

Spot on. It's all very well using the word 'safe' to describe the risks to younger children - but it's certainly not applicable for teachers or for children's families..! The virus spreads rapidly and will then be taken home to infect - & kill - older members of families. What a thing for a child to have to live with..! ?

I’m astounded that schools can decide it’s ‘not safe’ to work in them. What do people think would happen if the NHS workers decided the same?
These children being deprived of their education are the people we are counting on to look after us in our dotage. I would prefer my carers to have an education

Yes Lemongrove, but we dont go sit in a supermarket for about 6 hours at a time, mostly without masks, do we???

I'm in Essex. Near the Suffolk border. I must admit when I did go out a few weeks ago most people were wearing masks but I was out at 8am and only local and then I popped into a supermarket at 8pm and there were a few not wearing masks. I was quite surprised at what my friend said but she is out and about more than me.

Caro57, what if the children at this age/stage are all/mostly wiped out by the virus, who will 'look after you in your dotage' then?? Or what if they catch/spread it to you/or to people already in their 'dotage' what then?? Not really thought this through properly have we?....?

Cossy

Finally, I would add in the last 10 days I have seen articles stating both a 6 year and an 8 year old were admitted to hospital after testing positive for COVID and both extremely unwell, sadly the 8 year passed away. Please don’t put in that young children cannot spread this virus, because frankly no one knows and it’s looking highly likely that the new mutation affects all ages and can be caught and spread by any age !

Whilst I don't disagree with your posts per se, I think you need to be careful quoting random articles that you have read, about certain children dying.
We have all seen recently how this kind of statement can be taken as truth, and spreads like wildfire. Unsubstantiated articles just add to the anxiety and distress that many people are feeling at the moment.

And the 'children being deprived of their education"? Has anyone thought to ASK them if they want to take that risk of going to school/college in this stage of an uncontrollable pandemic??Some are old enough to have a grasp on it you know! Im sure some of them are terrified of being shoved into school/college day after day like this- put at risk, just because Boris& education buffs say "its fine!"- especially if they have already had a dose of covid (like some of my GC) - or if they're medically vulnerable, like my 17 yr old son, or if they have older, or medically vulnerable family at home?? Can you imagine what must be going through their minds? Just for a few lessons- its not worth the risk of their or their families lives for is it?!?

The death of the 8 year old has been quite widely reported in a number of papers.

Lemongrove- children arent supposed to be 'socialising' are they??

How many people would protest if someone put a whole few hundred animals (of any kind) into a big box and added a dose of each of these covid variants and waited to see what would happen?Yes there would probably be uproar! (And rightly so!) Yet so many seem to think its 'ok' or 'safe' to put all these HUMAN children/young people into schools/colleges, all together, day after day, where there's probably at least one dose of covid on the loose......???

People aged 12-16 are seven times more likely to bring the infection into a household than older people. The next most infectious age group are those of primary school age.

Nannan2

How many people would protest if someone put a whole few hundred animals (of any kind) into a big box and added a dose of each of these covid variants and waited to see what would happen?Yes there would probably be uproar! (And rightly so!) Yet so many seem to think its 'ok' or 'safe' to put all these HUMAN children/young people into schools/colleges, all together, day after day, where there's probably at least one dose of covid on the loose......???

So well put.

kwest

My grandchildren go to an excellent school. Wyedean on the English Welsh border.

It is in England, in Gloucestershire. However, a lot of pupils from Wales go there so they, and staff, are crossing the border daily, as are many local people.
Forest of Dean has just gone into Tier 4 along with Wales's Level 4.

Whinge Alert:

Is it just me who gets annoyed at seeing Boris bumping elbows with members of the public whom he meets?
People were doing that in the beginning but no-one does this now as it means you are too close to someone.

What does Johnson mean by "safe"?

He wants schools to remain open so he'll say anything to 'encourage' people to think he knows what he's talking about. Bombast as usual.