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Government departments, NHS, and local authorities have allocated almost £1.3 million on home office equipment over the past year, highlighting ongoing tensions between hybrid work policies and calls for increased public sector productivity.
Whitehall departments, quangos, and the NHS have collectively spent nearly £1.3 million of taxpayers’ money on work-from-home equipment in the past year, according to an investigation by The Mail on Sunday. This spending covers desks, office chairs, monitors, keyboards, and other IT equipment intended to support hybrid working arrangements that gained prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic. The report highlights significant contracts such as the Department of Health and Social Care’s £386,380 purchase of home working equipment and the Land Registry’s budget of up to £470,000 for similar purposes.
This wave of expenditure coincides with ongoing resistance within the public sector to a full return to office-based work. Labour has recently faced criticism for allegedly allowing a persistent work-from-home culture among civil servants, with office attendance across government ministries dropping from 75% in March 2023 to 72% by June. The Cabinet Office reportedly experienced the largest decline. Meanwhile, South Cambridgeshire District Council stirred controversy by permitting staff to work just four days a week, a policy Housing Secretary Steve Reed has mandated to revert to a five-day week.
Conservative housing spokesman Gareth Bacon voiced strong opposition to the continued investment in home working setups, stating, “It is extraordinary that taxpayers’ money is spent to facilitate working from home. At a time when productivity is plunging, taxpayers deserve better. These officials need to get back to the office and do the work for which taxpayers pay them.” His comments underscore a broader political debate about the balance between flexible working arrangements and the perceived need for public sector efficiency.
Individual public bodies have varied in their spending and justification for work-from-home support. United Lincolnshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, which allocated £33,000 specifically for radiographers to read scans remotely, cited operational needs across multiple sites and the importance of a “robust digital infrastructure” resilient to external disruptions such as extreme weather or future pandemics. Similarly, the Land Registry defended its contract by explaining that equipment purchases are made “if and when required,” suggesting a responsive rather than blanket approach to remote working support.
Looking beyond England, the Scottish Government reported nearly £99,000 spent on home working equipment over three years, including items similar to those purchased elsewhere, reflecting a consistent investment trend in facilitating remote work across public administrations. Other public sector organisations have also demonstrated similar commitments; for instance, the Greater London Authority approved a supplementary budget of up to £150,000 for IT and office equipment to help staff and Assembly Members working remotely maintain their productivity.
The reliance on home working equipment emerges amid broader challenges facing the public sector, including longstanding concerns about outdated technology. A government report highlighted that failure to modernize IT infrastructure has cost the public sector an estimated £45 billion in potential annual savings, partly due to inefficiencies and cyber vulnerabilities, especially in the NHS. This context may partly explain the continuing investment in home-working technology as part of broader digital transformation efforts.
Some departments have gone further in their investments. HM Revenue & Customs, for example, has spent over £80 million on remote working devices such as laptops, tablets, and desktops over the past three years, a figure that starkly contrasts with the smaller sums spent by other public bodies but reflects the significant scale and complexity of its operations.
Overall, the substantial public sector expenditure on home working equipment underscores a sustained commitment to hybrid and remote work models even as political pressures mount to return to traditional office settings. Stakeholders remain divided on the productivity and efficiency implications of these arrangements, highlighting a tension that is likely to shape future public sector workplace policies.
📌 Reference Map:
- [1] (Daily Mail) – Paragraphs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
- [2] (Scottish Government FOI) – Paragraph 7
- [5] (Greater London Authority) – Paragraph 8
- [6] (Government report on IT) – Paragraph 9
- [7] (HMRC spending report) – Paragraph 10
Source: Noah Wire Services
Noah Fact Check Pro
The draft above was created using the information available at the time the story first
emerged. We’ve since applied our fact-checking process to the final narrative, based on the criteria listed
below. The results are intended to help you assess the credibility of the piece and highlight any areas that may
warrant further investigation.
Freshness check
Score:
3
Notes:
🕰️ The narrative appears to be recycled content, with no new information or updates. The earliest known publication date of substantially similar content is not available, but the lack of new data suggests a low freshness score. ⚠️
Quotes check
Score:
2
Notes:
🕰️ The quotes used in the narrative are identical to those found in earlier material, indicating potential reuse. The lack of new or exclusive quotes further supports the low score. ⚠️
Source reliability
Score:
4
Notes:
⚠️ The narrative originates from a single outlet, The Mail on Sunday, which may limit the reliability of the information. The absence of corroboration from other reputable sources raises concerns about the accuracy and completeness of the report. ⚠️
Plausability check
Score:
5
Notes:
⚠️ The claims made in the narrative are plausible but lack supporting detail from other reputable outlets. The absence of specific factual anchors and the reliance on a single source reduce the overall credibility. ⚠️
Overall assessment
Verdict (FAIL, OPEN, PASS): FAIL
Confidence (LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH): HIGH
Summary:
⚠️ The narrative fails to meet the standards for freshness, originality, and reliability. The recycled content, reused quotes, and lack of corroboration from other reputable sources indicate a high likelihood of disinformation. ⚠️
