Dominic Raab, who served as both the British Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Secretary, resigned from his position on Friday.
This decision followed a lengthy independent investigation into several complaints. It is about his conduct towards civil servants who worked under him in Westminster.
In a letter addressed to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and shared on Twitter, Raab explained that he believes the inquiry had established a harmful precedent. However, he also noted that he would continue to support the government despite his resignation.
“I called for the inquiry and undertook to resign if it made any finding of bullying whatsoever. I believe it is important to keep my word,” Raab said.
The individual in question expressed dissatisfaction about staff members leaking information about his conduct to the press. Furthermore, he asserted that the inquiry’s criteria for defining bullying were excessively lenient.
He warned that this decision might lead to baseless allegations against government officials. So, impeding progress on behalf of the British public.
Despite feeling obligated to acknowledge the inquiry’s findings, he noted that the inquiry ultimately dismissed all but two of the accusations brought against him.
In two separate incidents, it was found that UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab had engaged in bullying behavior.
One incident occurred while he was dealing with a senior diplomat’s handling of Brexit negotiations over Gibraltar while working at the Foreign Office.
The other incident occurred during his earlier stint at the Ministry of Justice from 2021 to 2022 when he provided critical feedback.
Raab’s resignation makes him the third senior minister to depart over personal conduct issues since Rishi Sunak took office in October 2022, promising a government of integrity.
One of Sunak’s senior ministers, Gavin Williamson, was forced to resign in November following allegations of bullying.
The prime minister sacked Conservative Party chair Nadhim Zahawi in January after violating the ministerial code on his tax affairs.
The parliamentary standards watchdog is currently investigating Chancellor Rishi Sunak of his conduct. The investigation pertains to whether Sunak disclosed his wife’s stake in a childcare company that may enjoy new government policies.
Sunak ally
On Friday, Raab announced following the day Sunak received the results of an investigation into allegations of abusive behavior towards staff.
The investigation received testimony from various government officials regarding complaints of bullying across three different departments.
Raab, who began his career as a lawyer and later joined politics in 2000 by joining the Foreign Office, denied allegations that he had belittled and humiliated his staff, asserting that he had always acted professionally.
Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, he assumed a prominent position as the government leader when then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson was hospitalized with the virus. Al Jazeera’s Sonia Gallego, who reported from London, mentioned that a growing hostility between the civil service and the government is not unknown.
“But the allegations against Raab were serious indeed, of bullying, intimation, some staff said they feared going into the office, felt ill, and were unable to do their jobs,” she said.
“This caused a lot of concern about how workable this situation would have been. Had Raab not resigned, civil service members said they would have resigned instead.”
The crisis” presents a dilemma for Sunak, who received support from Raab during his bid to become Britain’s leader.
“Raab was a close political ally of Sunak,” Gallego said. “It remains to be seen whether he will remain silent on this issue as he goes from the front benches of the government.”
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