Opinion: The Covid inquiry must not ignore children

Dr Lee Hudson - It would be devastating if the costs of the pandemic for younger people were once again overlooked, says Dr Lee Hudson (UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health). The public inquiry into the Covid pandemic is a unique opportunity to examine the effects of, and seek mitigation for, the biggest national crisis in most of our lifetimes. So the marked absence of children and young people from its planned scope is disappointing and concerning. In the inquiry's draft terms of reference, children and young people are only hinted at once, in a sub-heading referring to "restrictions on attendance at places of education". As a researcher and doctor in child health, this lack of inclusion sadly comes as no surprise. Like with other quieter, more vulnerable groups (such as the very elderly), so often the plight of children and young people plays second fiddle - more often done to than done with or by. This cannot be the case in this national inquiry.