Doubts have been raised over reports that the latest tube strikes have cost London £50 million in lost productivity as the majority of companies are now geared up for home-working.

The recent tube strikes did cause travel chaos in the city, but claims by The London Chamber of Commerce and Industry that they also caused a whopping £50 million loss to businesses have been refuted.

The figures, which were based on data gained from the last 24-hour strike in 2007, have been described as surprising by HR experts and the Chartered Institute of Management, who claim that increased acceptance of working from home and flexible working should have meant the strike had far less impact on businesses.

Phoebe Leet, head of HR operations at technology giant Cisco UK & Ireland, said she would be 'hugely surprised' if the cost to businesses is as great as it was back in 2007.

“The developments in collaborative technology that we have seen in the past few years, combined with a growing acceptance among managers that flexible working can be highly effective in the right circumstances, should mean that employers in London are far better equipped to cope now compared to when the last strike took place,” she said.

The CMI survey revealed that 54 per cent of bosses believed that their organisations were prepared 'to a great extent' for remote working.