Council staff have been allowed to ‘work from the beach’ more than 2,000 times since the pandemic.
Town hall bosses approved at least 731 staff requests to work from abroad in 2023/24 – with one council worker logging in from Ibiza for four years.
There were 440 approvals the year after the Covid pandemic and 708 in 2022/23, before rising again last year. A further 226 requests were granted so far in the current financial year.
Critics branded the figures ‘horrifying’ and called on the Government to order a crackdown amid plummeting public sector productivity and town-hall plans to hike council taxes next year.
But Labour ministers refused to condemn them, saying it was a matter for councils.
Town halls doubled down last night, insisting they can still monitor employees’ performance from abroad and that offering the perk was crucial for hiring and retaining staff in ‘a competitive recruitment market’.
Many of the destinations staff have been allowed to work from – such as Barbados and – have time zones vastly different to the UK, raising concerns about whether staff can do their jobs properly and promptly respond to emails and telephone calls.
The real figures are likely to be much higher as many councils failed or refused to answer Freedom of Information requests.
The Tories’ local government spokesman, Kevin Hollinrake, said: ‘It’s shocking that Labour won’t condemn this for what it is.
‘But it is unsurprising given [Local Government Secretary] Angela Rayner is committed to ideological experiments like fulltime pay for part-time work and French-style union laws that will wreck our economy.
‘It shows this is a Labour Government that raises taxes skyhigh but couldn’t care less when it’s being wasted – and local people will suffer as a result.’
Joanna Marchong, of the Tax- Payers’ Alliance, which obtained the data, said: ‘Taxpayers will be horrified that more employees are being given permission than before to work from their sunbeds in what will come as a slap in the face to the residents who are facing higher council tax bills despite reduced frontline services.’
Former Tory Cabinet minister Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg added: ‘It indicates a contempt for the taxpayer – they’re just not taking work seriously.’
The data shows one employee for West Devon Borough Council was allowed to work from the Spanish party island of Ibiza from March 2020 until February this year.
Derby City Council approved someone working from France for 74 days and New Zealand for 42 days, while Sandwell Council in Birmingham allowed an employee to work from Dubai for nearly three weeks. Powys County
Council in Wales granted permission for someone to work from Barbados in 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24, although it did not reveal for how long in each year.
Central Bedfordshire Council approved more than 150 requests over the past two years.
Last night the local authority admitted it was official policy to allow staff to work from abroad for up to a month every year, with other councils having similar policies.
As many workers return to their jobs after the Christmas holidays, the figures will infuriate council tax payers who do not have the luxury of working remotely.
It also comes as some town halls look to hike council tax by at least 5 per cent while claiming they don’t have enough resources to continue delivering frontline services.
Meanwhile, Office for National Statistics data shows that public service productivity was estimated to be 8.5 per cent below pre-Covid levels in the second quarter of this year.
The Daily Mail highlighted the growing trend of council staff logging on from abroad last summer, a phenomenon dubbed ‘working from the beach’.
But while the private sector has been shifting away from remote working, councils have allowed it to expand.
In September, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said the previous Tory government’s emphasis on getting people to return to workplaces was ‘bizarre’, insisting that staff can be just as productive working remotely.
The Local Government Association, which represents town halls, said: ‘Councils have long experience of managing staff remotely and it is a matter for individual councils to agree from where staff can work.’
The Local Government Department said: ‘Councils are independent employers and they are responsible for managing their own workforces.’
Of more than 300 councils in England and Wales, 271 replied to Freedom of Information requests, with 65 providing data.