Covid-19: Education Settings

Debate between Mark Harper and Gavin Williamson

Tuesday 6th July 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Harper]

I am grateful, Madam Deputy Speaker. When schools return in September, every adult will have had the chance to be vaccinated at least once, which provides the bulk of protection, so why is regular testing still going to continue, perhaps forever? Last week, the Secretary of State said he wanted to see it end. What has changed?

[Gavin Williamson]

Not only do we get my right hon. Friend’s voice, but we get his picture on the screen too, so it was enhanced in every possible way.

Of course, we want to see schools return to as much of normal as possible as quickly as possible, but we have always taken the view that we need to take a cautious and careful approach, because we want things to be in a place where we do not have to take a step backwards. We have one of the most successful testing programmes that has ever been run in this country, and it was delivered in schools from the week commencing 8 March. We have seen it play an important role in containing and dealing with covid and, most importantly, ensuring we keep schools open and welcoming to pupils.

Covid-19: Impact on Attendance in Education Settings

Debate between Mark Harper and Gavin Williamson

Wednesday 30th June 2021 Commons Chamber

[Gavin Williamson]

I will happily pass on a copy of Hansard to the hon. Gentleman, so he can reference what I said earlier in response to this urgent question.

[Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean) (Con)]

The Secretary of State is right to push back on the Labour party. I do not remember Labour Members being huge champions of getting schools back on 8 March, when we were campaigning so strongly for it. Their words are a little bit hollow now.

The Secretary of State is clearly indicating where he wants to go on getting rid of bubbles. I am not really sure, though, why we cannot do it now. We are going to cause a huge problem for the rest of term and we will not be giving a lot of time for teachers in schools to prepare for the autumn. What I really wanted to ask him was about testing. We have now vaccinated all adults at risk of being seriously ill from covid. Given that covid is going to be endemic, is he really suggesting that for the rest of time we are going to be testing our schoolchildren on a regular basis? I think we need to move back to normal. Once we have protected everyone who is vulnerable to covid—children are not, largely—we need to get back to normal, not ensuring our children have to be continuously tested for the entirety of their school careers.

[Gavin Williamson]

My right hon. Friend raises a very interesting and thoughtful point. We want to see schools return to normality. We do not want children to feel as if there is an extra layer of things they have to do that we, as adults, do not have to do. That is very important. Testing has been an incredibly important tool in the armoury to get schools back, especially on 8 March when we saw the mass return of schools, but we do keep it under review. We take scientific advice from the Department of Health and Social Care, Public Health England and other scientific bodies. We are looking at this continuously and we have found it a useful tool, but in the much longer term do I see testing as something that we expect children to continuously do always in the future? No, I do not. Ideally, I want to move away from that at the earliest and most realistic possible stage.

Students’ Return to Universities

Debate between Mark Harper and Gavin Williamson

Tuesday 29th September 2020 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean) (Con)]

One of the things that has worried a lot of university students is the idea that, if they either test positive or are a contact of someone who tests positive, they might have to self-isolate, even over Christmas, in their university accommodation, and I am glad the Secretary of State confirmed that we will treat university students like everyone else. The regulations yesterday confirm that people can self-isolate not just at their own home, but at the home of a friend or family member, so someone could return to a family home if that was appropriate. To reassure university students, can he confirm that they will be able to do that and will not be trapped in their university accommodation for the period of self-isolation?

[Gavin Williamson]

We are very conscious that a lot of students—most students—will not want to be in university accommodation over the Christmas period. We will be setting out quite clearly how that will be avoided, so any students who do not want to be in that position will be able to be at home with their loved ones. We will make sure that all students who want to return home are able to do so.

Educational Settings

Debate between Mark Harper and Gavin Williamson

Wednesday 18th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Gavin Williamson]

That is certainly something we have been discussing with the Treasury and something that we will be highlighting as part of a wider range of economic issues that the Chancellor recognises he needs to address.

[Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean) (Con)]

On the issue of key workers, I think it is going to be a little more complex than the Secretary of State says. For example, what about those who work in our food distribution sector? However, I wish to ask about what he said about schools being closed until further notice— I am thinking back to the question that the Prime Minister was asked at Prime Minister’s questions by my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May). Does he have any expectation that schools will open, for the population as a whole, at any time before the end of this year?

[Gavin Williamson]

Obviously, my greatest hope is that we could get schools opened very rapidly, but I am going to be guided by the best scientific and medical advice in terms of when we do that. My right hon. Friend also referred to the fact that the term key workers should not just be seen to refer only to NHS professionals—that it is much broader. That is very clearly understood by the Cabinet Office, and what we do will reflect that fact.

Prisoners’ Right to Vote

Debate between Mark Harper and Gavin Williamson

Tuesday 2nd November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Harper]

The hon. Lady will know from what I said earlier that we are considering how to implement the Hirst judgment. When we have made those decisions we will announce them to the House, and she will be able to ask those specific questions at that time.

[Gavin Williamson (South Staffordshire) (Con)]

I would like my hon. Friend to assure the House how he is going to make sure that rapists, murderers and paedophiles will not have the right to vote in my constituency of South Staffordshire, and across this country.

[Mr Harper]

My hon. Friend can be reassured by what I said earlier, which was that pretty much every Member on the Government Benches, from the Prime Minister down, is unhappy about having to implement this judgment. We are going to have to do it, however, but he can take it from the fact that we are not very happy about having to do that, that when deciding on the judgments we need to reach and in bringing our proposals forward, we will take into account everything that he has said.