Raab Quits as Sunak’s Deputy After UK Bullying Report

© Bloomberg Dominic Raab

(Bloomberg) — UK Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab resigned after an independent investigation criticized his “abrasive” treatment of civil servants, drawing a line under a months-long saga that threatened to undermine Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s pledge to restore professionalism to the government.

“I feel duty bound to accept the outcome of the inquiry,” Raab said on Friday in a letter to Sunak that he posted on Twitter. He noted that the inquiry had dismissed most of the accusations made against him, adding: “Its two adverse findings are flawed and set a dangerous precedent for the conduct of good government.”

The loss of a key ally is a major blow to Sunak, who has sought to present his government as a departure from the Boris Johnson era defined by political scandals that distracted from the day-to-day running of the country. Sunak said in his response that he accepted the resignation with “great sadness.” His office later said that Raab would be replaced as deputy premier by Oliver Dowden, and that his role as justice secretary would be filled by Alex Chalk.

While Raab’s swift exit highlights the determination of Sunak’s Conservative administration to be seen as delivering on his first-day pledge to lead a government infused with “integrity” and “accountability,” losing a key ally is also a blow to the prime minister.

The departure of Raab, 49, came after employment law specialist Adam Tolley on Thursday delivered the findings of his five-month probe into the deputy premier’s treatment of civil servants during his tenure in three government departments. 

Tolley was asked by Sunak in November to look into accusations of abrasive behavior by Raab toward government officials. In all, Tolley had been looking into eight formal complaints covering Raab’s tenure in three government departments that predated the Sunak administration. 

‘Intimidating’

In his report, Tolley said:

At one meeting when he was foreign secretary, Raab “acted in a way which was intimidating, in the sense of unreasonably and persistently aggressive conduct.”In relation to the Foreign Office complaint, Raab’s conduct “involved an abuse or misuse of power in a way that undermines or humiliates.”Raab in his first tenure as justice secretary “was on some occasions ‘abrasive’, in the sense of a personal style which is and feels intimidating or insulting to the individual.”Raab described some justice officials’ work as “utterly useless” and “woeful”, but did “not intend by the conduct described to upset or humiliate.”Raab’s conduct as Brexit secretary “was not offensive, malicious or insulting.”There had been a “series of inaccurate and misleading media reports” about the probe.There was “no persuasive evidence” that Raab shouted at individuals, or swore at anyone.

Read the Full Investigation Report Here

Tolley’s findings add to the sense that a toxic atmosphere has built up between ministers in the ruling Conservative Party and the body of politically neutral civil servants that keeps government running. The FDA union of senior civil servants says that one in six members reports experiencing or witnessing bullying or harassment in government departments in the past year.

“This is more than just one or two bad apples,” FDA Assistant General secretary Amy Leversidge told Bloomberg Radio on Friday. “And these behaviors becoming are more and more widespread.”

‘Free-for-All’

Leversidge said former Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s decision not to punish then Home Secretary Priti Patel after she was found to have broken the ministerial code in her treatment of staff “created a situation where it’s a bit of a free-for-all, and ministers can see no consequences for their actions.” 

But Raab interpreted the report as showing “that I had not once, in four and a half years, sworn or shouted at anyone, let alone thrown anything or otherwise physically intimidated anyone, nor intentionally sought to belittle anyone.”

He apologized for “any unintended stress or offense” he may have caused, while reiterating that ministers “must be able to give direct critical feedback on briefings and submissions to senior officials, in order to set the standards and drive the reform the public expect of us.”

More on UK politics: 

Sunak, for his part, said the investigation into Raab had exposed “shortcomings in the historic process that have negatively affected everyone involved.” Without elaborating, he added “we should learn from this how to better handle such matters in the future.”

Williamson, Zahawi

Raab was the second most senior member of the government, holding the joint roles of deputy prime minister and justice secretary under both Sunak and former premier Boris Johnson. He also previously served as foreign secretary and Brexit secretary.

He is the third member of the cabinet to depart under Sunak, after Gavin Williamson quit amid separate bullying allegations, and former Conservative Party chairman Nadhim Zahawi also lost his job after being found to have broken the ministerial code over statements about his tax affairs. Raab was a long-standing ally of Sunak, and was one of his most high-profile supporters during the Conservative leadership contest last summer.

His departure raises questions about his future political career. Raab has a slim majority of about 2,700 votes in his Esher and Walton seat in leafy Surrey, which is being heavily targeted by the Liberal Democrat party. The Conservatives trail Labour by a double-digit margin in polling, ahead of a general election he must call by January 2025 at the latest.

–With assistance from Lizzy Burden and Yuan Potts.

(Updates with cabinet appointments in third paragraph)

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