Children may be more at-risk of catching the new mutated coronavirus variant than any previous strains, Government advisers today claimed.
Professor Neil Ferguson, an epidemiologist of Imperial College London and member of No10's advisory group NERVTAG, said there was a 'hint' children - who have barely been affected by the pandemic so far - were more susceptible to the mutation.
The academic, known as 'Professor Lockdown', was instrumental in the UK's March restrictions but stepped down from his advisory position on SAGE after he flaunted the guidance he helped implement to visit his married lover.
He said it is possible the surge of the new variant, called B.1.1.7, during the November lockdown — which occurred in school term-time — could have happened because the variant is better at infecting children than past SARS-CoV-2 iterations.