Dominic Raab resigns – latest: Ex-deputy PM attacks ‘activist’ civil servants after bullying report
Raab accuses ‘small minority of very activist civil servants’ of blocking proposed reforms
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Your support makes all the difference.Dominic Raab has accused “activist” and “passive aggressive” civil servants of trying to block reforms like Brexit in a new interview.
Mr Raab resigned from cabinet this morning after a report upheld two claims of bullying against him and found he was “unreasonably and persistently aggressive” in a meeting while foreign secretary.
Speaking to the BBC, Mr Raab charged a small group of “very activist” senior civil servants with pushing back against proposed government reforms because they don’t support them.
The former deputy PM complained that the report into his conduct did not make clear that no complaints lodged by junior officials were upheld.
He told the BBC that two instances where he was found at fault came from a “handful of very senior officials”.
Mr Raab said there was risk that a “very small minority of very activist civil servants” not in favour of the reforms were “effectively trying to block government”.
“That’s not on. That’s not democratic,” he added.
Mr Raab’s departure sparked a mini-reshuffle, with Alex Chalk, a former junior minister for the Ministry of Defence, replacing him as justice secretary, and Oliver Dowden as deputy prime minister.
The delay in Raab’s departure raises inevitable questions about Sunak’s judgement
Reaction to Raab bullying probe will discourage future complaint, IfG chief says
Allegations against Dominic Raab that sent him to backbenches
‘Raab mess’ led to ‘complete breakdown’ of trust between ministers and civil servants, think tank says
ICYMI: Raab acted in an ‘intimidating’ fashion with ‘persistently aggressive conduct’, report finds
Dominic Raab dramatically quit as deputy prime minister on Friday with a defiant attack on a bullying inquiry that found he had been “persistently aggressive” towards officials.
An independent investigation found Mr Raab had made what “could have been understood as a threat” and that he had “acted in a way which was intimidating”.
Full report:
Raab’s conduct was ‘intimidating’ with ‘persistently aggressive conduct’, report says
Dominic Raab has attacked the findings as ‘flawed’ and says they set a dangerous precedent
Reaction to Raab bullying probe will discourage future complaint, IfG chief says
Rishi Sunak and Dominic Raab’s response to the report into bullying accusations against the former deputy prime minister has made future civil service complaints more difficult, according to a think tank chief.
Hannah White, director of the Institute for Government (IfG), said “no civil servant would feel encouraged to speak out in future” and called the episode a missed opportunity for the prime minister to reinforce standards.
Full report:
Reaction to Raab bullying probe will discourage future complaints — IfG chief
Prime minister missed an opportunity to reinforce professionalism within his administration, says think tank chielf
Meet Sunak’s new deputy PM: comprehensive kid known as ‘Olive’ who was compared to Tony Blair’s attack dog Alastair Campbell
Some in the Conservative Party are calling it an “Olive branch”.
Rishi Sunak has sought to restore order after the resignation of his deputy prime minister in a bullying scandal by calling on one of his closest allies in politics.
Oliver Dowden – affectionately known as Olive to his Tory friends – is the prime minister’s new deputy, appointed just hours after Dominic Raab quit the cabinet.
Full report:
Meet Sunak’s new deputy PM ‘Olive’ - who was compared to Alastair Campbell
Oliver Dowden joined Tory HQ as expert in aggressive political ad campaigns for David Cameron
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