Boris Johnson confirms working from home advice set to be scrapped on 21 June
Boris Johnson has confirmed the government will scrap its work from home advice on 21 June if its roadmap out of Covid restrictions goes to plan.
The Prime Minister told MPs today that he is confident office working will come back en-masse and that “I think it’ll come back remarkably quickly, but it does depend on keeping the virus down”.
When asked by a Tory backbencher if the work from home advice will be dropped on 21 June, Johnson said: “That is certainly our intention provided we stay on track, but I want to be sure that people will wait until we’re able to say that with more clarity later on, because we must be guided by what’s happening with the pandemic.
“She’s so right about London and the dynamism of London and indeed any of our great cities that do depend on people having the confidence on going to work.”
The government’s roadmap lists 21 June as the target to lift most if not all Covid restrictions, however it was subject to reviews on several issues.
These included Michael Gove-led reviews into social distancing and the future of work.
Johnson’s comments today are the clearest indication yet that people will be encouraged to go back into their offices from this summer.
Boost for bricks and mortar businesses
The news will be a boon to many bricks and mortar businesses in central London that have suffered from low footfall and intermittent lockdowns over the past 14 months.
Newly re-elected mayor of London Sadiq Khan made getting people back into central London his top priority as he got sworn in for a second term on Monday.
He launched the £6m Let’s Do London campaign in bid to kickstart the city’s economy by getting domestic tourists back to the capital.
This has so far included new artworks by world renowned British artist David Hockney on the Tube and is set to include a number of events and new advertisements.
“The work begins anew today to refresh and reignite our city and to kick-start our economy as London continues to reopen,” Khan said.
“This includes making jobs, jobs, jobs a top priority and banging the drum for London to attract the jobs, tourism and investment our city needs.”