Pay more tax to work from home, says Deutsche Bank

Those staff will save money on travel, lunch and socialising, the economists said, while also contributing less to the infrastructure of the economy.

“That is a big problem for the economy as it has taken decades and centuries to build up the wider business and economic infrastructure that supports face-to-face working,” the report said.

The idea is that employers would pay the levy if they don’t provide staff with a desk, whereas if the worker chooses to work from home they would be taxed for each day they did so.

In the US, the strategists argue that the tax could pay for a $1,500 grant to the 29m workers who earn under $30,000 a year and are unable to work from home.