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MPs were told they should be working in Westminster in early June to “set an example” for the rest of the country as the blockade is further reduced.
Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg pointed to historic “virtual parliament” measures that saw MPs cast their first votes online on Tuesday as the coronavirus will soon come to an end.
He made the announcement before confirmation that the rules that allow politicians to debate and challenge ministers via the video link will last for a few weeks.
Unprecedented steps include remote voting and talking via video link
The changes were introduced so that parliamentarians could stay home, but still scrutinize the government during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has so far killed at least 32,000 people.
But Mr Rees-Mogg noted that as Prime Minister Boris Johnson pushes for people to start working again where it is safe to do so in England, MPs would soon have to do it too.
Rees-Mogg said parliamentarians “should be leaders by example”
“It is clear that parliament must soon set an example of how we gradually return to a full-fledged country again; our constituents would expect nothing less,” he told the Commons.
“Therefore, while we must follow the path of public health guidance, it is vital that when we ask other people to work and go to their workplaces if they cannot do so from home, we should not be the exempt from that. ” .
“In fact, we should lead by example.”
The announcement places parliamentarians in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in a difficult position as their delegated governments continue to apply the “stay home” rules.
John Nicholson of the Scottish National Party said the move would only “set the wrong example” to break the guidelines north of the border and “expose our constituents to danger.”
The “stay home” message is still valid in Scotland
Liberal Democrat MP Wendy Chamberlain added: “The current advice is that people should work at home if they can, we’ve shown that MPs can.”
“So far, the government has not published any guidance on how parliamentarians and staff should maintain a two-meter distance from each other while working in parliament.
“Perhaps most worrying of all, parliamentarians and staff would be filling even more public transportation networks and presumably traveling back and forth to communities across the country.”
A government source told Sky News that “MPs are critical workers across the country and around the world have been encouraged to go to work if they cannot work from home.”
When asked why the rules had to be changed if the orientation for critical workers, such as parliamentarians, remains the same, the source said: “The measures were only intended to be temporary.
“As many members said this afternoon, hybridization has a detrimental effect on scrutiny and the government also cannot advance its legislative agenda as it would like: the two constitutional roles of parliament.
“This is all provisional, subject to medical advice.”
