Guidance to work from home will be lifted on June 21, Boris Johnson has indicated.
The Prime Minister said it was “certainly our intention” to take that step at the next stage of the Government’s road map for England.
Encouraging people to work from home where they can has helped drive down the risk of passing on coronavirus, but shops and cafes in town and city centres which rely on office workers for trade have been hit by the change in working patterns.
Mr Johnson said the intention was to change the guidance “provided we stay on track” in efforts to tackle coronavirus.
He told MPs: “We’ll wait until we’re able to say that with more clarity a bit later on because we must be guided by what’s happening with the pandemic. It does depend on keeping the virus down.”
Downing Street would not be drawn on whether chief scientific adviser (CSA) Sir Patrick Vallance and chief medical officer (CMO) Professor Chris Whitty backed the plan.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “I can’t speak for the CMO and CSA on this. The Government always set out its intention to review this guidance ahead of step four (on the road map).”
Asked what preparations were being made for civil servants to return to their desks, the spokesman said: “I think you are jumping ahead. We will set out our approach nearer the time to provide suitable preparation to all businesses and, indeed, the civil service.”
