But Mr Rycroft took the unusual step by issuing a statement Thursday in support of Dr Tierney, which could put him in opposition to some ministers.
Mr Rycroft said: “This story completely ignores reality. Abbey is an extremely talented leader who manages our world-class visa and passport operations. With sites spread across the UK, Abi works day in and day out with teams from across the country providing vital services to the British public.
“Abi’s working location had absolutely nothing to do with the current passport situation, which is largely the result of a drop in applications during the pandemic. Our teams work hard to meet demand.
“We are proud to spread opportunities and talents across the country, moving away from the old notion that everything has to be done in London.”
Mr Rycroft, the highest-ranking Interior Ministry official, warned his boss, Priti Patel, the interior minister, earlier this month that Rwanda’s asylum policy lacked “sufficient evidence” to demonstrate the benefits of the scheme.
Interior Ministry officials said Dr. Tierney had worked “most of her time” in passport offices across the country, including London, and “occasionally” at home, but would not be more accurate in public.
“Work outside London”
A source said Mr Rycroft did not support working from home, but employees’ right to “work outside London”. Asked if he could risk colliding with Mr Rees-Mogg’s campaign, the source said: “Yes, potentially, but this is clearly a debate that is already happening in the government.”
The source said that Nadine Doris, the Minister of Culture, had accused Mr Rees-Mogg of a “Dickensian” approach to “measuring bodies behind desks”.
The permanent secretary of the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport has previously praised the merits of working from home because it gives her more time on the exercise bike.
This happened when Dr. Tierney lured the head of the French company behind the chaos of the carpet passport support line because of his “unacceptable” performance.
She asked for improvements from the head of the Paris-based Teleperformance for complaining about missed calls, delays of up to four hours in answering customers and failure to provide accurate information.
The company, which now attracts hundreds of additional staff, is also responsible for managing helplines in Ukraine’s much-criticized refugee schemes, where it has complained that it has failed to update applicants for the status of their visa application.
On Thursday, it became clear that only one-fifth – about 11,100 – of the 51,300 Ukrainians who have received Homes for Ukraine visas have arrived in the UK. About 16,000 of the 34,900 Ukrainians who received visas entered the United Kingdom.
Teleperformance did not respond to a request for comment.
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