Keir Starmer urged to issue work from home order to help Brits save fuel

Keir Starmer urged to issue work from home order to help Brits save fuelFormer government advisor says working from home would be "perfectly sensible measure" to reduce demand for fuel and combat any risk of shortages because of the Middle East conflictMoneyGraham Hiscott Business and Consumer Editor14:13, 15 Apr 2026View 2 ImagesFirms should give employees the option to work from home to reduce fuel demand, expert says(Image: Getty)The government has been urged to encourage Brits to work from home to prevent energy shortages in the wake of the war in Iran.‌Professor Nick Butler, previously vice-president for strategy and policy at oil giant BP, said it would be “perfectly sensible” for ministers to tell workers to stay at home, warning that the price of diesel could still go a “good deal” above £2 per litre.‌Oil prices have rocketed since the outbreak of the war between the US and Israel and Iran. As well as a surge in petrol and diesel prices, it has led to concerns about a potential strain on supplies at some stage.‌“Some countries, I think particularly in Asia where the crisis has hit earliest, they’re taking an extra day a week at home,” he told Times Radio.“People are being encouraged to work at home. And I think you have to test now whether there’s a willingness. And as I read the behavioural science, people do respond. They don’t all do it perfectly, but they respond if other people are responding.”View 2 ImagesFormer government advisor says other countries have urged workers to remain at home one day a week(Image: Getty)‌Asked if the Government should issue recommendations to work from home, Prof Butler said: “Yes, I think that that would be a perfectly sensible measure.”Prof Butler, who was adviser to Gordon Brown when he was Labour prime minister, also said that the price of diesel could surge higher still, warning that the worst is yet to come.He said: “The real crisis for Britain and for Europe will come at the end of April and in early May, w...