An independent investigation into complaints that Dominic Raab, the British Deputy Prime Minister, bullied colleagues has resulted in his resignation from the government.
“I called for the inquiry and undertook to resign if it made any finding of bullying whatsoever,” Raab’s letter said.
“I believe it is important to keep my word.”
This is the third scandal in the last six months to force out one of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s top ministers, damaging his efforts to revive the Conservative Party’s fortunes.
Raab resigned in a letter to the Prime Minister before the report was made public.
His departure is a setback for Sunak just two weeks ahead of English local council elections where his party is predicted to fare badly.
The independent report by lawyer Adam Tolley found that Raab had acted in a way that was “intimidating” and “persistently aggressive” while at the Foreign Office. Also at the Justice Ministry, it was found that he had gone “further than was necessary or appropriate in delivering critical feedback”.
Raab apologised for any unintended stress or offence caused but said the decision to set the threshold for bullying so low “set a dangerous precedent” for the conduct of good government.
Keir Starmer, the leader of the main opposition Labour Party, accused Sunak of “weakness” for failing to sack his deputy rather than letting him resign.
This is not first Minister to leave government. Another of Sunak’s senior ministers, Gavin Williamson, had to quit in November after bullying allegations. While Rishi Sunak sacked Conservative Party chair Nadhim Zahawi in January after he was found to have broken the ministerial code over his openness about his tax affairs.
Sunak himself is facing his own investigation by parliament’s standards watchdog into his behaviour over whether he properly declared his wife’s shareholding in a childcare company which stands to benefit from government policy.
