Nigel Farage could help give high streets a boost by getting workers back in council offices (Image: Getty)

       I must start by saying: I do a lot of work from home. If I could magically relocate the Express newsdesk to Middlesbrough and change that, then I absolutely would.

       I think it’s critically important to be able to interact face to face with your colleagues, and I write that as I tap out this piece on a train to London. But what the young’uns have dubbed WFH seems to have become the gold standard when people are both recruiting for and looking for a new job. More's the pity.

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       Nigel Farage has decided to crack down on working from home after his impressive win at the recent local elections. His party Reform managed to take the helm at 10 councils. Now he is set to channel Elon Musk in his DOGE capacity, ripping council workers from their kitchen tables and plonking them back behind their desks at the town hall.

       He explained: “We know, by every single measure that’s been done, on public sector productivity both in Whitehall and at county hall we’re performing worse than we were five years ago, despite advances in technology.”

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       Despite being something the unions will absolutely hate, it is such a key move. However, I think it's vital for a reason other than the fact it will switch council workers’ focus from popping on another washload to actually doing their jobs.

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       Nigel Farage wants to get council staff back in their offices (Image: Getty)

       When I was first elected in 2019, Middlesbrough Town Hall was a buzzing place. There were councillors bobbing in and out, liaising face to face with council officers in a bid to improve their areas. Residents would come directly to the office to raise burning issues with their representatives. Even schoolchildren were in on the action, getting tours of the beautiful building and council chamber to get an understanding of how local politics works.

       Middlesbrough Council is a major employer in the town, with almost 3,000 staff. Staff would spill over into the town's shops and cafes to grab a bite to eat: my daily penchant for brie and bacon sandwiches was almost solely responsible for me packing on about a stone. But - most crucially - if you needed someone, you knew where to find them.

       Fast forward to now and things are so very different. The town hall is hollowed out, buckets sit around catching drips from the leaking roof and you’d be lucky to pass anyone in the cavernous, creaking corridors. It’s so sad.

       But more than that, the shift - which has also taken place in the private sector - is killing UK high streets. We all know that they are on life support, one cardiac arrest away from total flatline. Don’t just take my word for it, research organisation Centre for Cities, explained the impact it's is having on our high streets.

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       It said: “A key reason why large city centres had vibrant high streets pre-pandemic was due to the volume of workers who commuted into them each day, creating a market for shops, bars and restaurants to sell to.”

       I do think that Farage will have his work cut out trying to reverse the trend, as vital as I think it is. I know this because when I was deputy mayor at Middlesbrough Council I tried, but was told by the then chief exec that contracts had been quietly changed. It was too late. If he can crack it, however, I know for sure that it’ll do more than just get council officers out of their PJs - it’ll help give the high streets a much-needed defib resus.

       Sadly, the lovely bacon and brie coffee shop - with ambitious owners - shut down - and many more continue to scrape by day to day. If Farage manages to breathe new life into our high streets once again, it’ll be a huge win for him politically - and a crucial lifeline for every cafe owner, shopkeeper and defender of our once proud town and city centres.