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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
World
Danny Atherton

Boris Johnson urges people to get back to work to stop office gossip

Boris Johnson has urged people to get back to the office to stop their co-workers gossiping about them.

The Prime Minister asked everyone were possible to work from home during the height of the pandemic to stop the spread of the disease but he is now asking people to stop the practice of working from home and return to the office.

However, in an interview with LBC radio station the PM admitted he had not got all his staff back working full time yet.

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On Tuesday the Daily Mail reported Mr Johnson would be urging people to return to work during his speech at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester on Wednesday.

The newspaper said: "He (Mr Johnson) believes very strongly in the value of face-to-face working.

"It is critical for the training and development of young people. How can you learn a new job on Zoom?"

It was understood there were fears of another spike in coronavirus which meant workers were reluctant to return to their offices but they have since waned.

The Prime Minister however has not ruled that out completely.

Speaking to LBC he said: "We've got to be humble in the face of nature, and we've got to recognise that the disease can... or a new variant or another pandemic could always hit us.

"The data that I see at the moment is very clear that we are right to stick to plan A, which is what we're on.

"And that means opening up and encouraging people but always continuing - as we said at that press conference a few weeks ago - always continuing to do sensible things like washing your hands, having ventilation, all that kind of thing, making sure you're sensible.

"But we are certainly encouraging people to get back to work in the normal way."

"I think that for young people in particular, it is really essential if you're going to learn on the job, you can't just do it on Zoom.

"You've got to be able to come in and sit at the desk, you've got to know what everyone else is talking about.

"Otherwise, you're going to be gossiped about and you're going to lose out.

"You need to be there, and you have the stimulus of exchange and competition."

Cabinet Minister Jake Berry has also urged civil servants to go back to the office.

Speaking at a fringe event in Manchester on Monday, Mr Berry, chairman of the Northern Research Group of Conservative MPs and former Northern Powerhouse minister, said: "We have to end the Civil Service 'woke-ing' from home - sorry, I mean working from home, but, let's be honest, it often is woke-ing."

Asked about Mr Berry's comments, Boris Johnson's official spokesman defended the Civil Service but emphasised the importance of "working in person" and said the Government wanted "to see a steady return of the public to working in person".

Official work from home guidance ended on July 19 with the government saying they expected "a gradual return over the summer".

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