Nigel Farage calls for an end to working from home
Nigel Farage has called for an end to working from home culture, because he believes it gets in the way of ‘hard work’.
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Mr Farage thinks it is ‘nonsense’ that people are more productive when working from home.
Speaking at a rally in Birmingham, the Reform UK leader said he thinks workers are “more productive being with other fellow human beings”.
He said “you can't go on the sick because you've got mild anxiety. But it is an attitudinal change that Britain needs.
“An attitudinal change to hard work, rather than work-life balance.
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“An attitudinal change to the idea of working from home. People aren't more productive working at home – it's a load of nonsense. They're more productive being with other fellow human beings and working as part of a team.”
The number of people working from home doubled between late 2019 and early 2022, from 4.7 million to 9.9 million, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Latest official data from the start of 2025 showed 28 per cent of the UK workforce was in hybrid work, 13 per cent are fully remote and 44 per cent travel to work.
Polling consistently shows strong support for hybrid working in both the public and private sectors. Employees say remote work improves productivity, work-life balance and staff retention.
Mr Farage first vowed to end WFH culture in May around the time of the local elections.
He said staff in Reform councils would be told: “either work from the office or you’re gone.”
Some big private firms including Amazon, Boots and JP Morgan are encouraging staff to get back into the office.
Asda and Marks and Spencer chief executive Lord Rose said in January last year that remote working policies had spawned a generation who are 'not doing proper work'.