Commenting on the publication of the first report by the Covid-19 Inquiry, Daniel Kebede, General Secretary of the National Education Union, said;
“Baroness Hallet’s first report of the Covid-19 Public Inquiry makes it very clear: the government of the day failed our country. Not just through ineffective contingency planning and preparation, but also through austerity policies that had brought public services to their knees.
‘The Inquiry report rightly focusses its attention on the state of the NHS, but it also highlights how government austerity had depleted many other public services.
‘‘When the pandemic hit, resilience was and remains close to zero in education. School funding was at totally inadequate levels and school building improvements had slowed drastically limiting space and effective ventilation. Child poverty was at unacceptable levels. Government measures did little or nothing to help mitigate against these obstacles.
‘The NEU will participate fully in the upcoming education and young people module of the Inquiry. Most immediately, government must include trade unions in the ‘red team’ expert input the Inquiry recommends is necessary to provide essential real-world input into future emergency planning.
‘NEU’s thoughts remain with those who suffered during the pandemic, some of whom paid the ultimate price. This must not be allowed to happen again. That duty falls on current and future governments and politicians of all colours”.