Boris Johnson says it's 'too early to say' whether schools will reopen after February half-term

14 January 2021, 08:07 | Updated: 14 January 2021, 08:31

By Alice Dear

The Prime Minister said the reopening of schools depends on the vaccination process and the success of lockdown.

Boris Johnson warns it’s ‘too early to tell’ if schools can reopen after February half-term

Boris Johnson told MPs in the Liaison Committee yesterday that is it "too early" to say whether schools will be able to reopen following the February half-term break.

The Prime Minister said that the reopening of schools depends on he success of lockdown, the success of the vaccination process as well as finding out whether the South Africa or Brazil variants of the virus are "vaccine resistant".

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He said: "The priority is obviously to get schools open as soon as possible, whether we can do that after the half term depends on a number of things: the success of the vaccination process, depends on us not finding out the SA or Brazil variants are vaccine resistant."

While he added there was no evidence that these strains were resistant to the vaccine, he said that the research has to "go well".

Mr Johnson went on: "But the crucial thing is the lockdown measures have to go well.

"What we are seeing today is some early signs of progress in containing the virus, but it's far, far too early to say if we can see any relaxation in February."

These comments come after Education Secretary Gavin Williamson revealed that there are "contingency plans" in place for schools that may need to stay shut following strict lockdown measures.

Areas in Covid-19 'hotspots' could stay closed after others reopen, he suggested.

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