REVEALED: HUGE COST OF SENDING WORKERS BACK HOME

SHUTTING OFFICES AGAIN WOULD COST ECONOMY BILLIONS, LEAKED REPORT WARNS

- Nicholas Cecil, Jonathan Prynn and David Bond

A RETURN to millions more people working from home would blow a multi-billion pound hole in the economy, according to a leaked government report.

It revealed the scale of the WFH hit to businesses, which bosses are imploring the Government to avoid.

Ministers desperately want to “keep open” London and other cities to stop the recovery being “choked” off so they are pleading with millions to get fully vaccinated against Covid, including booster jabs, to strengthen the nation’s defences.

London minister Paul Scully told the Standard: “As we head towards Christmas, I’d like nothing more than to see London’s pubs, theatres and shops thriving with activity.

“Get the vaccine, book your booster jab and let’s keep this great city of ours open for business.”

He stressed: “This isn’t just about protecting yourself, it’s about protecting London and our freedoms too.” His intervention came as a Treasury document, leaked to Politico London Playbook, put the cost of “Plan B” at between £11 billion to £18 billion if it were in force for five months until the end of March.