Multiple government “crises” have been blamed on civil servants working from home and leaving ministers “without support”.

“It was notable that the departments where we’ve had so many difficulties – the Home Office is a good example – had horribly low figures during multiple crises,” a Whitehall source said, citing the resettlement of Afghan refugees last summer as well as getting the Ukrainian refugees visa scheme off the ground.

“They’ve had two of these big crises, and both times ministers have been left without support.”

The Home Office had a daily average of 44 per cent of staff coming into its main London office in the week beginning April 4.  

The source also said empty desks at the Department for Education have become a “running joke”, with mandarins accused of using the work from home culture as an excuse to “extend the weekend”.

“The most popular days to work from home are Monday and Friday – it’s a concerning culture overall,” the source added.

Mr Rees-Mogg has sent ministers a league table showing how many employees from each government department were going into the office on an average day during the week of April 4.

The Department for Education fared worst, with 25 per cent of staff going in each day on average while the rest worked remotely. It was followed by the Department for Work and Pensions, where 27 per cent came into the office, and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, where 31 per cent came in.