#Homeworking and business owning: a story in 10 tweets:

1. A false distinction is being made between bosses and employees. Bosses are also human beings who have commutes, and kids, and family commitments. Many bosses don't want to be back at work any more than employees do.

2. Clearly there's a short term negative effect on #cities. But HELLO! Those of us *not* living in cities are seeing revival of our local high streets; people popping out at lunchtime and buying their coffee and sandwiches locally, from an independent shop, not Pret. Good huh?

3. Long term there's an opportunity to recreate cities as a place where people can live, socialise and also work in new ways. Trying to get us back to where we were at the start of the year is like trying to put the genie back in the lamp. It's not gonna happen....

4. This Govt has shown a total lack of imagination on this issue, as has the CBI and other groups who allegedly represent 'business' but who in my experience are frequently out of step with what modern business owners think

5. I am a #BusinessOwner and a woman and a mum, as are many colleagues. We see this as a massive opportunity to reduce the commute and improve the quality of life of many of our staff. We don't need to "see" them at a desk to trust they're doing something. #trustyourstaff

6. Furthermore in future we can recruit more people who want to work flexibly, who have caring or other non-work responsibilities, and we can recruit them from anywhere - they don't need to be near an office. That's great news in terms of housing and affordability.
#HousingCrisis

7. Govt seems to think business works like The Apprentice, w. stern Alan Sugar type figures sitting behind large wooden desks angrily demanding their staff get to the office or They're Fired. Maybe that is what it's like at the types of businesses most Tory MPs have worked at

8. But as a modern business owner I can tell you many many businesses are not like that, and I resent being grouped in among whoever the CBI thinks they're representing when they use the media to threaten and cajole staff back to offices for no good reason

9. Running a business, IMHO, is about flexibility, and seizing opportunity from changes in situations. Covid has torn the working landscape apart. Decent businesses run by nice people are trying to adapt to that in a way that works for their staff, who *are* their business

10. Perhaps the Govt could speak to a few of us about what we think, rather than their big business mates...

@gabyhinsliff @peston @nicktolhurst @robertreed10 @JohnHyde1982 a thread, further to your tweets which I liked/appreciated yesterday!

In that first tweet I clearly should have said "office" not "work". We're *working* but not at offices.