Summer’s over for UK politicians as Sunak faces a crisis over crumbling schools

By JILL LAWLESS
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — British lawmakers have headed back to Parliament after their summer break but thousands of U.K. children won’t be returning to their classrooms this week. Their schools are at risk of collapse from crumbling concrete. The government told more than 150 schools last week to shut some or all of their buildings because they contain lightweight, air-filled concrete. School leaders scrambled Monday to find alternative classroom space or preparing to resort to online instruction. The government says the total number of affected schools is likely to be in the hundreds but not the thousands. The news is a headache for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as he works to shore up support for his Conservative Party.