LONDON, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- Leaders of nine London boroughs have written to the British government, calling for official steps to reverse plans to reopen primary schools in some areas of the British capital, local media reported Friday.

All secondary schools and some primary schools in England will face delayed return when the new school term begins next week, but primary schools in 10 London boroughs are due to reopen on time, said the BBC.

In the letter to British Education Secretary Gavin Williamson, the borough leaders said they were "struggling to understand the rationale" behind the idea as pupils and teachers moved between boroughs, said the BBC.

Primary schools in 23 London boroughs will remain closed, but schools in the City of London, Camden, Greenwich, Hackney, Haringey, Harrow, Islington, Kingston, Lambeth and Lewisham will open, according to the BBC.

The letter called for primary school pupils across London to move to online learning until Jan. 18, 2021, apart from vulnerable children and those of key workers.

"The omission of 10 boroughs ignores the deep interconnectedness of our city, and the many thousands of teachers and students that study or teach in one borough and live in another," the letter said.

Williamson told the House of Commons (lower house of the British Parliament) Wednesday that most primary schools will open as planned on Monday, Jan. 4, while all secondary pupils in exam years are to return during the week beginning Jan. 11.

Primary schools in a small number of areas with the highest COVID-19 infection rates will remain closed temporarily.

Calling the plans "nonsensical", mayor of London Sadiq Khan also wrote to the British government, asking for a "delay to all London schools opening until mid-January".

The British government has said the measure would be reviewed fortnightly.

Williamson said he wants school closures to be as "short as possible".

London and many other parts of England have already been under the highest Tier Four restrictions, which require residents in the areas to stay at home, with limited exemptions. People are also urged to work from home when they can, and should not enter or leave those areas.

As the world is struggling to contain the pandemic, vaccination is underway in some countries with the already-authorized coronavirus vaccines.

Meanwhile, 232 candidate vaccines are still being developed worldwide -- 60 of them in clinical trials -- in countries including Germany, China, France, Russia, Britian and the United States, the World Health Organization said Tuesday. Enditem

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