Wrong move to reopen schools as mutant strain spreads: Yorkshire Post Letters

The apparently much greater transmission rate of the new variant of coronavirus calls into question the wisdom of reopening schools after the Christmas holiday.

One might argue that this development renders any effort to slow the spread of the virus nugatory. But the roll-out of a vaccine gives the pace of the epidemic in the coming weeks much greater significance.

It is notable that while so many of our activities has been closed down, at a cost to the next generation of hundreds of billions of pounds, schools have remained, after food supplies and the NHS, our top priority. This is in spite of the fact that very many people have gone on to successful careers after missing a year of their education.

The driver for this, aside from a free child-minding service, appears to be the concern that for many children staying at home is synonymous with being abused, neglected, malnourished and intellectually impoverished.

From: Steve Crees, Pontefract.

One of the most disappointing aspects of the lockdown has been the cases where people have reported their neighbours to the police over some minor rule break which has resulted in them being fined.

Is this what it has come to – a nation with such a rich history of being good dependable neighbours?

Some might say that they deserve what they got, and should have stuck by the rules, but I
just think it is a sad state of affairs.

From: Mrs C Simmons, Halifax.

Teachers weren’t sat at home during the first lockdown, they were looking after the children of key workers so that they could carry on going to work.

I appreciate everything that everyone has done by carrying on working as best they can keeping the country going. Whether it is lorry drivers or cleaners, they’ve all played their part, including care assistants. I wholeheartedly give them all my thanks.

From: Alec Denton, Guiseley.

I WISH to take issue with the letter from Henry Cobden (The Yorkshire Post, December 29). As octogenarians, my wife and I have felt safe doing our own shopping throughout the pandemic, mainly because we avoid busy times, but also because footfall in general is much less, with so many customers using online or click & collect facilities.

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