 The Department of Education, Innovation and Gender Relations during a recent press conference indicated that many factors had to be considered in the closure and subsequent reopening of school. One such factor, according to Minister for Education Honourable Dr. Gil Rigabet, was the overall well-being of students. The minister noted that school remains a safe space for a number of students. One of the issues we struggled with when we were previously forced to close schools and among the issues we've had to consider with respect to reopening of school include one, the nutritional support that many students benefit from while in school, which means that when they are out of school, we cannot guarantee that they are getting the requisite age-appropriate nutritional support. Further, though it is an unsavory topic, for many of our children, school is the only safe space that they know. And our school counsellors, who fall under the leadership of Miss Eugene, along with other stakeholders, have been very keen to ensure that we can bring those students back into schools, which is really, for many of them, a very safe space. Minister Honourable Dr. Rigabet explained that with the acknowledgement that the school feeding programme was inadequately meeting the needs of students, a new school feeding policy has been adopted. Previously, we recognised that the school feeding programme was implemented only at the primary school level. And the question was asked very often, when that child then moves on to secondary school, is there an automatic change in the economic circumstance of his or her family? So over the last two or three years, we have started with a pilot feeding programme in secondary schools and we've been able over time to include more participating schools onto that school feeding programme. I'm elated to say that we are now informed by a scientific, technical school feeding policy, which means that thanks to the partnership of Ministry of Health again, and people like Miss Hunt, for example, we've been able to speak to the nutritional content of that which we share with students in school, we've addressed the issue of sugars as well, artificial sweeteners, and what that means for our students. The Department of Education is also considering the expansion of the school feeding programme so as to include students who due to their parents' change in economic situation due to the COVID-19 pandemic may now require that support. We are grateful for the new school feeding policy, too, that we are mindful of the extended or expanded need, especially given the economic challenges that families now face, many of who would have been displaced by COVID-19 through the loss of their jobs. And so we have to double our efforts to meet children who perhaps previously had no need to be on a school feeding programme, but may very well have to be entertained and catered for, moving forward precisely because of the new economic situation that their parents have found themselves in. Minister for Education, Honourable Dr Gil Rigabet.