THE prime minister??s workaholic regime of late nights fuelled by strong coffee is setting the wrong example, warns a think tank with close links to new Labour.

The government should be promoting the merits of a good night??s sleep boosted by an afternoon catnap, says a report being prepared by Demos.

Britain??s bleary-eyed employees, 16% of whom clock up more than 60 hours a week, spend longer at work than those in any other country in Europe. The Demos report claims that the average Briton has accumulated a ??sleep deficit?? of 25-30 hours.

The think tank claims that lack of rest hurts the creativity and productivity of workers, as well as relationships at home, and increases the number of road accidents. A growth in binge drinking in Britain??s ??work hard, play hard?? culture has also taken its toll.

James Wilsdon, head of strategy for Demos, said: ??The more we know about the psychological importance of sleep, the more important it is that the government steps in to ensure we all get enough.

??If the government can offer a practical package of solutions and incentives to employers, I think that would go down very well at the ballot box.??

Leaders such as Tony Blair, who rarely gets more than six hours?? sleep a night, and Margaret Thatcher, who often slept for only four hours when she was in No 10, have been admired. But when Blair was rushed to hospital in October with an irregular heartbeat, his condition was blamed on a combination of too little sleep and too much coffee ?? he has now cut back on the caffeine.

Labour has tried to improve the ??work-life balance?? by legislating for flexible working hours. This month it announced plans to give new fathers six months?? unpaid leave.

Demos believes that Labour should turn its interventionist instincts to the nation??s sleep patterns. It should consider banning breakfast meetings and instead promote siestas and ??sleep days?? to allow weary staff to catch up on their rest.

Experts believe that a better role model than Blair is George W Bush. The American president saw even the threat of war with Iraq as no reason to postpone his 9.30pm bedtime, and carried a pillow with him on his election campaign trail to take daytime ??power naps??.

Tales of Thatcher??s ability to burn the midnight oil were explained this year when her former personal assistant revealed that her boss had stayed awake only with the help of whisky and vitamin B12 injections. John Shneerson, director of the sleep centre at Papworth hospital in Cambridgeshire, said a healthier role model was Winston Churchill during the second world war. He also skimped on sleep at night but caught up by taking frequent naps during the day.

William Daniel, who left his City job to run a business offering trout-fishing days to other stressed-out financial workers, said his exhausted clients often fell asleep on the river bank. ??I sleep well nowadays,?? said Daniel, ??but I certainly didn??t before. It??s that nightmare thing: you??re worrying about a deal you??re working on, you look at the clock, it??s 4.30am and you know you??ve got to get up in two hours.??

Experts claim productivity lost by workers taking daytime naps should be more than recouped through the improved alertness of well rested staff.

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