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Thousands of public sector workers in UK quangos have been granted permission to work remotely from foreign countries, sometimes for extended periods as long as a year, to visit partners and stretch out holidays, a Freedom of Information release reveals. Figures compiled by the TaxPayers' Alliance expose that these "quangocrats" have logged in from as far afield as Australia, Japan, and the Maldives, all while drawing salaries funded by British taxpayers, Daily Dazzling Dawn understands.
Reasons cited for these permissions include visiting loved ones overseas, tacking extra time onto annual leave, and even plugging urgent staffing gaps by having vacationing employees work remotely. This revelation has sparked outrage, with critics labeling it a blatant misuse of public funds.
The Conservative party has seized on this issue, warning that Labour's support for more flexible working arrangements could exacerbate the problem. Shadow Paymaster General Richard Holden MP didn't mince his words, stating, "It’s disgraceful that these sun-worshipping quangocrats seem more interested in working on their tan lines than working for the British people."
Joanna Marchong of the TaxPayers’ Alliance echoed these concerns, highlighting the growing public scrutiny over the effectiveness and accountability of quangos. "Taxpayers are growing ever more curious about what on earth the vast network of quangos are actually doing, and why so much power has been devolved to them," she stated. "Ministers have handed significant control of services and policy to unelected bodies frequently not based in London, limiting further their ability to hold them to account. And it’s now been revealed that many staff are not just based outside of London, they’re often not based in the UK at all."
While a government spokesperson emphasized that civil servants are expected to work primarily from the office and that overseas remote work should only be approved for exceptional personal circumstances like bereavement, they also pointed out that many of the organizations in question do not employ civil servants directly and have their own policies. The government added that a review of all arm's length bodies is underway to identify opportunities for closures, mergers, or bringing powers back into government departments.
This "work from paradise" trend is likely to fuel further debate about the accountability and value for money provided by quangos, particularly as taxpayers grapple with their own economic pressures. The question of whether public sector employees should be permitted to work remotely from abroad, and under what circumstances, is set to become a key point of contention.
