Just quoting this to remind people that with this new plan detailed in The Times, a workforce is already available. Council staff and civil servants -- a very large proportion of people in both groups are either WFH, or currently not working.
Not working meaning they're either on a CS thing called "special leave" (paid), as in my case and a lot of others.
Or furloughed, as in some other categories of civil servant -- generally not PCS-unionised I gather!
So watch this space, because in my part of the CS, we're at the moment being updated weekly - usually on Fridays.
I've already been hearing unofficial rumours that we (or at least some of us) will be brought back in to do Covid-related work.
Rumour only for now, but my prediction is that I and colleagues could well be redeployed pretty soon .... we'll see!