Thread by @karamballes

#r4today have Viner talking about schools

"Transmission very low because of measures like social distancing, improved ventilation, mask wearing"
Presenter: "how long do we need to keep these measures in place?"
V: "social distancing will need to remain in place for now"

LIES!

https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1396588950089879554

FFS Have I slipped into a parallel universe where Johnson and co actually care about safety of the school population rather than almost willfully wanted to get us infected.

Viner has been DfEs go to expert to support its policies.

Johnson has spent more on takeaways than the government has spent on ventilation in schools.
The cost of his private plane and paint job would have covered the costs of having real meaningful air filtration in schools.

Not a penny has been spent on ventilation, Viner knows this

As for masks, Viner knows damn well requirement for masks has been dropped, he was one of those arguing in support of the change in DfE policy a couple of weeks ago.

Defends removal of masks one week, the next he says schools are safe because of masks (that we no longer have)!

Every word was frankly bollocks particularly those claims that social distancing is keeping us safe.
Viner knows this, and the failure of the presenter to pick up these inaccuracies is outrageous, its either intentional gaslighting or they're so ill informed its scary.

Viner and presenter them go on to talk about how we have seen no substantial spikes and outbreaks on schools

Bolton students facing some of the most explosive growth seen during the whole pandemic wasn't mentioned

We're back to "community transmission" and "at the school gates"

He literally said parents need to be careful at the school gates and on transport to and from schools.

And not a mention that government has suppressed data on B1.617.2 cases in schools.

Was interviews purpose to disseminate a false narrative?

https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1396588950089879554?s=19

I notice there was no alternative voice to balance Viner, just the same as Thursday last week when #r4today had a slot to argue against children getting vaccinated, a skeptic view thats quickly gaining traction in the media.

https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1395257284591292416?s=19

We also had the same when the government were deciding to remove masks, I heard a BBC "debate" where there was no advocate for masks and a skeptic lobbyists was allowed to spout disinformation without challenge.

https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1389969109878775808?s=19

Heres a Professor they could have had on to provide some balance, although the lies about social distancing and masks should have just been called out for what they are.

https://twitter.com/ProfColinDavis/status/1396783107676778498?s=19

Heres Viner arguing against introducing masks, he's opposed them all along and now the recommendations been removed he's claiming that we have masks in school and that's whats keeping us safe

https://twitter.com/BBCNewsnight/status/1298021228146495492?s=19

@russellviner could you clear this up? I'm struggling to square this circle.

Do you think masks cut transmission in schools?

Infact Viner has been a important figure in ensuring schools didn't have the adequate protections he claimed we have.

His deeply flawed analysis in April 2020 is a key study cited by skeptics around the world to argue "children don't transmit"

https://twitter.com/SarahDRasmussen/status/1309437229622865920?s=19

UfT who encourage harassing Heads and whose followers attack education workers as child abusers for having masks in schools rely heavily on Viners flawed studies and opinion pieces.
This piece coincided with Mails "Let them be heroes" headline and death threats I recieved

Last year Viner was saying that because there were low infection rates in education during lockdown then 30 kids no sd or masks would also be fine.
The quoted study itself said its findings shouldn't be applied to full reopening but that was ignored

DfE then relied on Viner quoting himself, misquoting studies and ignoring other more recent studies hat didn't fit the narrative as justification for its policies including failing to invest in the ventilation Viner just claimed we now have

Viner was also involved in creating the DfEs Containment Framework which ignored SAGEs recommendations, basically no matter how high infections rose primary schools would ignore the pandemic, and even in Dec we didn't reach the tier whixh advised masks in secondary classes

Thanks to his advise schools returned in September with leaky bubbles and staggered starts as the only new measures from March 2020

When cases began to rise he claimed it was because we were testing too many children

Man's been a munitions factory for skeptics, churning out ammo for them around the world.

Strange he now claims LFD testing will keep us safe when he opposed using PCRs for students with minor symptoms.

As cases rose and early talk of circuit breakers began, as he complained about testing, he puts out another paper which gained much traction arguing schools wouldn't impact on transmission

B117 then emerged, spreading through schools, into community and then the world.

As B117 killed 10s of thousand in the new year, Halfon under pressure from skeptic lobbyists decided to have a meeting to question if lockdown for schools in winter was sensible.

Viner made claims about non existent mitigations being adequate.

https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1351631020689416195?s=19

February, Viner produces another paper that suggests that as schools don't significantly contribute to transmission. This is used by DfE to explain a full return with minimal additional measures in secondary and non in primary