BORIS Johnson’s hopes of getting all school kids back in classrooms on 8 March handed a huge boost after Labour boss Sir Keir Starmer defied his union paymasters to back the plan.
The Prime Minister is preparing a major school safety campaign this week to convince parents children are safe, despite nine teaching unions saying they want a staggered return.
Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates…
He will also unveil millions in support for a major catch up push and a Covid mass-testing regime for all schools to follow in the coming days.
But a fresh bout Labour civil war exploded once again after Sir Keir threw his weight behind a “big bang” opening – to the fury of left-wingers in his party.
And they were backed by the Archbishop of Canterbury who said he was “absolutely sure” the government was right to prioritise the reopening of schools, saying: “That is probably the most urgent thing, it’s been the most urgent thing right the way through.”
It came as it emerged pupils will be given extra classes during the summer holidays to help them catch up with lessons missed during the pandemic.
Speaking on Sunday morning, Sir Keir told Sky News: “Ideally, I’d like to see all schools back open on 8th March and all children back in school on March 8.
“I’ve been worried through the pandemic, a number of people have, about the impact that being out of school has on particularly vulnerable children and the attainment gap is getting bigger, so ideally March 8.
“We’ll have to see obviously where the data is, see where the science is, but that’s what we should be working towards.
“If that means more testing, if that means Nightingale classrooms, if it means other measures, let’s do that because I want to get our kids back into school.
But that flew in the face of a joint statement from the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), the NAHT school leaders’ union, the National Education Union (NEU), the NASUWT teachers’ union, the National Governance Association (NGA), the Sixth Form Colleges Association (SFCA) and Labour-affiliated unions Unison, Unite and GMB.
They all said school return should be staggered by year group and called Mr Johnson’s plan “reckless”.
Unison, Unite and GMB are also major donors to the Labour party.
And former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell also took to the airwaves on Sunday morning to demand that Labour “listen to the unions.”
