The UK economy could lose almost half a trillion pounds of output if workers fail to return to their offices, a study estimates.
Douglas McWilliams, a former chief economic adviser to the Confederation of British Industry, has warned the economy will not return to its pre-pandemic size until 2025 if home working continues in its current form, which would add up to at least £480bn in lost activity.
McWilliams said: “‘If we carry on working at home when at least half want to return, we run the risk of turning into a 90% economy with GDP stuck a 10th down off its peak.”
The research, conducted for a client of McWilliams’ consultancy, the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), comes as one of the UK’s biggest employers plans to permanently close nearly 100 offices…