British government
New trouble for Sunak: Deputy Prime Minister resigned
Dominic Raab was once considered a close ally of Rishi Sunak. photo
© Frank Augstein/AP
Rishi Sunak loses another cabinet member. The Brexit hardliner and former Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab has to vacate his post because of allegations of bullying.
The Conservative British governing party does not come to rest. Less than two weeks before local elections across much of England, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s deputy Dominic Raab has resigned over allegations of bullying.
The Brexit hardliner Raab last held the position of Minister of Justice in addition to the role of Deputy Prime Minister. With his resignation on Friday, he reacted to the results of an investigation report into his behavior in various ministerial posts in recent years. Former Secretary of Defense Alex Chalk will now head the Justice Department. Deputy Prime Minister will be Minister of State Oliver Dowden.
The report partially confirmed the allegations against Raab. Among other things, he is said to have reprimanded employees harshly or even announced consequences if he was not satisfied with their work or the answers to his questions. Overall, he is said to have great distrust of his employees, whom he suspected of wanting to sabotage his reform plans.
Raab clearly vents his frustration
Raab did not appear insightful in his letter of resignation. Of several allegations, only two were recognized as justified, he defended himself. However, these are very low-threshold and therefore represent a “dangerous precedent”.
The reviewer found “that not once in four and a half years have I insulted or yelled at anyone, thrown objects or otherwise physically intimidated or intentionally humiliated anyone,” Raab wrote. In a guest article also published in the newspaper “The Telegraph” on Friday, he described the approach to the allegations of bullying as “Kafkaesque”.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak ordered the investigation after allegations by former Raab employees became known. The head of government regretted the resignation in a reply, but described it as correct. Raab was once considered a close ally of Sunak. However, the cool tone of his letter of resignation was interpreted as a sign of a break with the prime minister.
Tories are behind in the polls
The Tory party is well behind the opposition Labor party in nationwide polls for next year’s general election. Should she do poorly in the forthcoming local elections across much of England on May 4th, that could put additional pressure on Sunak.
Sunak himself faces an investigation into whether he violated the code of conduct for MPs. He is accused of not declaring a financial conflict of interest. It involves shares owned by his wife, Akshata Murty, in a government-backed child care company.