Status: 09.11.2022 07:04
Bullying, insults and threats – after serious allegations against British Minister Williamson, he has now announced his resignation. Two weeks after taking office, the pressure on Prime Minister Sunak is increasing.
British Minister Gavin Williamson has resigned amid allegations of bullying. The minister of state without portfolio submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. It was the first resignation in Sunak’s cabinet, which the prime minister presented two weeks ago.
Williamson is accused of sending threatening and otherwise inappropriate messages to MPs and former colleagues. In particular, former Tory Parliamentary Secretary Wendy Morton is said to have received a string of such messages. Williamson accused her of wanting to “punish” MPs; then he threatened: “Everything has its price.”
Threats via WhatsApp
According to the Whatsapp news published by the Sunday Times newspaper, he had tried to put pressure on Morton with sometimes harsh language and threats. Williamson was reportedly trying to secure an invitation to the funeral service in September following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Further allegations were made by a former employee. Accordingly, Williamson is said to have advised the man to “cut his throat” and “jump out the window”.
Williamson already fired by May and Johnson
In his resignation letter, Williamson referred to the various allegations against him that are now being investigated. He rejects the “characterization” of his actions that was made, but recognizes that this could affect the work of the government.
Williamson, 46, has also held ministerial positions in the governments of Theresa May and Boris Johnson, but was fired by both prime ministers. Sunak said of Williamson’s resignation that he would wait for independent investigative results before passing judgment on the case.
Prime Minister Sunak under pressure
The resignation of the state minister is likely to raise doubts as to whether Sunak is in a position to steer his conservative governing party, which was recently at odds and sinking into chaos, into calmer waters. He had taken over as prime minister two weeks ago from Liz Truss, who was forced to resign by her own faction after just seven weeks in office. Truss, on the other hand, only succeeded Johnson, who had been ousted due to numerous scandals, at the beginning of September.
Particularly sensitive for Sunak is the allegation that he was already aware that there had been allegations of bullying against Williamson when he appointed him to the cabinet. The prime minister claimed that he had no knowledge of the specific allegations. But the opposition Labor Party saw him badly damaged.
“This is yet another example of Rishi Sunak’s poor judgment and weak leadership,” said Labor Vice-President Angela Rayner. The head of government was obviously tied to dirty backroom deals, which he accepted to avoid an internal party runoff for the Truss successor.