Critics of Covid lockdowns had considerable support among scientists, but academics remained silent for fear it could damage their careers, an expert has claimed.
Professor Robert Dingwall says those who expressed anti-consensus views during the pandemic “paid a price for trying to express loyal opposition.”
The former government Covid adviser said those in scientific circles who were concerned about the impact of lockdowns on society were intimidated by the potential consequences they could face professionally.
In the years following the pandemic, concerns were raised about how school closures affected children’s education, while NHS waiting lists for treatment soared.
It comes as a new survey found that almost 70 per cent of British academics say they believe more thought should have been given to how the country’s lockdown would affect society.
Customers queue socially distanced outside a Nationwide Building Society branch in Worcester in September 2020.
Then-Health Secretary Matt Hancock answers media questions at a Covid briefing in Downing Street in March 2020.
The survey of 198 anonymous UK scientists, carried out by The Telegraph and Censuswide, found that many had reservations about implementing a national lockdown in response to the spread of Covid.
When asked if they thought “the Government paid enough attention to the long-term damage of lockdowns”, 68 per cent said no.
Only 19 percent said they thought “the government paid enough attention” to this before implementing the policy.
Respondents also criticized the way the Government conveyed its message to the public, with 70 per cent saying they thought it was “not transparent or well communicated”.
However, most scientists said they thought the decisions the Government made were transparent and well communicated.
They also backed the data used as a basis for Covid policy decisions, with 70 per cent saying the effectiveness of the model used was “excellent”, “good” or “average”.
One expert said the survey results showed there was less consensus on lockdowns than was shown to the public at the time.
Former government Covid adviser Professor Robert Dingwall, of Nottingham Trent University, told The Telegraph: “It was always clear to those of us who were able to make evidence-based criticism of ‘official science’ and government actions, that We enjoy considerable tacit support from the scientific community.
‘However, this was tempered by concerns about loss of sponsorship, access to research grants and difficulty of publication as a cost of speaking.
“No doubt others paid a price for trying to express loyal opposition. I don’t blame anyone for keeping their head down if they have a career to build, a family to support or a preference for a quiet life.’
After the pandemic, NHS waiting lists soared to record levels, and more than 120,000 patients are thought to have died while waiting for operations and procedures in 2022.
One Conservative MP who criticized lockdowns during the pandemic said he thought “the lack of open, science-based conversation during the crisis was…disturbing”.
Bob Seely told The Telegraph: “At the time, we were understandably focused on the immediate risk. However, it was also clear that very little thought was given to the long-term damage to a society.
‘Schools should never have been closed. We are seeing a generation of young people harmed. There was too much politics on the part of some scientists.’
Professor Robert Dingwall says there was “considerable tacit support” for people questioning the lockdown within the scientific community.
A man wearing a face mask crosses the street as he walks through central Manchester in April 2020.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson told The Telegraph: ‘Throughout the pandemic, the Government acted to save lives and livelihoods, preventing the NHS from being overwhelmed, and launched a world-leading vaccine that protected millions.
“We have always said there are lessons to be learned from the pandemic and we are committed to learning from the findings of the Covid-19 investigation, which will play a key role in informing the Government’s planning and preparations for the future.”
Last year, charities and experts criticized the Government for the “preventable” harm caused to children during lockdown.
The Alliance of Children’s Rights Organizations said social distancing and the closure of schools and playgrounds had “long-lasting and era-defining” effects on young people’s mental health.
The group was set up to provide evidence in Covid research and includes charities Save the Children, Just for Kids Law and Children’s Rights Alliance of England.
The report What happens to the children? argues that “the worst impacts of the pandemic for children could have been avoided.”
He describes the pandemic as “years of lost learning, lost freedoms and lost hope.”
The document accuses ministers of failing to consider children’s rights when deciding how to contain the virus, while the number of young people seeking mental health support has risen from 12.1 per cent in 2017 to 17.8 per cent in 2022.
Standards in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of primary school also fell from a pass rate of 65 per cent in 2018-19 to 59 per cent in 2022-23.
Former Children’s Commissioner Anne Longfield, who was in office during the first year of the pandemic, said the Government had questions to answer.
She said: ‘This report sets out in very clear terms how children were often at the back of the queue when the Government made its most important decisions about closing and reopening the economy.
‘Three years later, many children and families are paying the price for the mistakes made. Many of the long-term problems arising from Covid could have been alleviated, or even avoided entirely, if the Government had given the interests of children top priority. This must never happen again.’
A Department for Education spokesperson said at the time: “Time at school is vital to a child’s education, wellbeing and future life opportunities. We know that children were among the hardest hit by the pandemic and we are helping them catch up both academically and socially.
“We have made £5 billion available to help pupils recover from the impact of the pandemic, including more than £1.5 billion for the National Tutoring Program and the 16-19 Tuition Fund, which have helped millions of students to recover lost learning.