An analysis reported by the Daily Mail indicates that sick leave among civil servants in Whitehall has risen since the Labour government took office. The claim frames the increase as part of a broader critique of the civil service, often referred to disparagingly as "the Whitehall blob," and suggests rising absence rates under the current administration.

The article text supplied does not include the underlying data, figures or departmental breakdowns behind this claim, only the headline assertion. No further detail on the scale of the increase, comparison periods, or official responses from the Cabinet Office or unions was provided in the available content.