This is quickly becoming no country for young people
The prime minister has touted “levelling up” as the overarching theme of his domestic policy agenda. But in no area is the hollowness of this commitment revealed more than in relation to children and young people. Throughout this pandemic, the government has disregarded the young. At almost every turn, it has failed to put in place adequate measures to reduce the impact of Covid, which has been hugely disruptive to their education and wellbeing.
And so it continues, with the government washing its hands of any responsibility for ensuring this month’s exam results are fair to young people, an ongoing lack of clarity about any requirement for university students to be double-vaccinated ahead of the start of term to attend in person and an ill-advised reform to vocational education that its own assessment says will disproportionately affect young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.