KEEPING schools in Wales closed is a last resort, but a "serious consideration" in light of the developing situation with coronavirus, health minister Vaughan Gething said today.

Speaking at the Welsh Government's coronavirus briefing, Mr Gething said: “[Keeping schools closed] is a serious consideration.

“The government has been really clear that closing schools is a last resort.

“There’s a difference between closing schools and no learning taking place and moving to online.

“We also know it’s practically more difficult for primary school children to learn online and to people who still need to work from home, that’s a real challenge.

“Primary school closures or primary school children having to learn from home has a real impact on people being able to go to work.

“We deliberately made a choice [in December] to have the first few weeks as a flexible opportunity to return, before the expectation that people can be back in classrooms by January 18.”

He added that if the situation changed then different changes may be made, but this should be based on evidence from "scientific and public health experts."

"The deliberate choices we are making are always underpinned by evidence," he said.

"Any choice we make will be underpinned by evidence, which we will share with the population."

IN OTHER NEWS:

Mr Gething was also asked at the briefing whether teachers and school staff should be prioritised in receiving coronavirus vaccinations.

Mr Gething claimed there is little evidence to suggest transmission between pupils and staff, which shows that control measures have been “largely effective”.

“Our priority list is about saving as many lives as possible," explained Mr Gething.

“If we move any particular occupational group further up the list that means we de-prioritise another group of people."

He added that if the evidence of risk changed then the situation could change, but this could impact people “at real risk of harm”.