Dominic Raab resigns after two bullying complaints against him are upheld

Published

2 years ago

April 21, 2023

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Dominic Raab has resigned after he was found to have bullied staff members while working as a cabinet minister across different departments.

A report from independent investigator Adam Tolley said two complaints against him had been upheld, concluding the deputy prime minister and justice secretary had “acted in a way which was intimidating”, and had been “unreasonably and persistently aggressive” in meetings.

The findings also said his conduct “involved an abuse or misuse of power in a way that undermines or humiliates”.

But in a resignation letter posted on Twitter, Mr Raab took issue with the report, calling the inquiry “flawed” and claiming the conclusions “set a dangerous precedent for the conduct of good government”.

Politics live: Raab ‘keeps word’ and quits

The news comes after Rishi Sunak was presented with an official report into Mr Raab’s behaviour on Thursday.

In his letter, Mr Sunak said he accepted his deputy’s resignation “with great sadness”, saying it “should not make us forget your record of delivery in both this government and previous administrations”.

And the PM said there had been “shortcomings in the historic process that have negatively affected everyone involved”, adding: “We should learn from this how to better handle such matters in future”.

But Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the situation showed “the continual weakness of the prime minister”, adding: “He should never have appointed [Mr Raab] in the first place… and then he didn’t sack him.

“It is that decision and that weakness I think that goes to the heart, not just of this prime minister, but of the 13 years now of [Conservative] failure and it is why people desperately want a change.”

Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats called for Mr Raab to resign as an MP and for a by-election to be held in his seat, saying he had shown “he is not only unfit to serve as a minister, but is totally unfit to represent his constituents in parliament”.

The 48-page report from Mr Tolley said there had been eight formal complaints against Mr Raab from across his time as justice secretary, foreign secretary and Brexit secretary.

A total of 66 interviews were carried out over the five months – including four with the minister himself – and 44 written contributions were given to the investigator.

In one of the complaints, upheld from his time at the Foreign Office, Mr Tolley concluded the minister had “acted in a way which was intimidating, in the sense of unreasonably and persistently aggressive in the context of a workplace meeting”.

He said Mr Raab’s conduct “also involved an abuse or misuse of power in a way that undermines or humiliates”, adding: “In particular, he went beyond what was reasonably necessary in order to give effect to his decision and introduced a punitive element.

“His conduct was bound to be experienced as undermining or humiliating by the affected individual, and it was so experienced. I infer that [Mr Raab] must have been aware of this effect; at the very least, he ought reasonably to have been so aware.”

The minister also used “a form of intimidating behaviour in the sense of conveying a threat of unspecified disciplinary action” at a member of staff.

And he was criticised over his “use of physical gestures”, including “extending his hand directly out towards another person’s face with a view to making them stop talking” and “loud banging of the table to make a point”.

The second complaint came from his time at the Ministry of Justice, and Mr Tolley concluded Mr Raab “acted in a manner which was intimidating, in the sense of going further than was necessary or appropriate in delivering critical feedback and also insulting, in the sense of making unconstructive critical comments about the quality of work done (whether or not as a matter of substance any criticism was justified)”.

Examples included “unfairly personal criticism” of officials who didn’t answer his questions in meetings, and making comments about staff “frustrating his policy objectives” that left them feeling “insulted” – using phrases like “utterly useless” and “woeful”.

The investigator said Mr Raab “did not intend by the conduct described to upset or humiliate” or “target anyone for a specific type of treatment”, but “he did not always have in mind the impact of his approach at the level of the individual who was affected by it” and “ought to have realised earlier that some individuals would find it difficult to cope with his style and should have adjusted his behaviour accordingly”.

In his conclusions, Mr Tolley said: “The [deputy prime minister] has been able to regulate this level of ‘abrasiveness’ since the announcement of the investigation. He should have altered his approach earlier.”

But in an article published in the Telegraph shortly after his ousting, Mr Raab hit back at the findings and described the probe as “a Kafkaesque saga”.

In his resignation letter, the outgoing minister wrote: “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.”

But he said the report showed he had “not once, in four and a half years, sworn or shouted at anyone, let alone thrown anything or otherwise physically intimidated anyone, nor intentionally sought to belittle anyone”.

Mr Raab claimed the inquiry had set “the threshold for bullying so low” that it had “set a dangerous precedent”.

He added: “I am genuinely sorry for any unintended stress or offence that any officials felt, as a result of the pace, standards and challenge that I brought to the Ministry of Justice.

“That is, however, what the public expect of ministers working on their behalf.”

In his newspaper article, Mr Raab gave his own account of the complaints made against him, saying some staff “complained that I asked too many questions, including in budget meetings with hundreds of millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money at stake, curtailed unwieldy interventions in meetings, or that they were intimidated or offended by my body language”.

“These were dismissed,” he added.

On the allegations that were upheld, he said the report concluded “I had abused my power by replacing a lead negotiator when I was foreign secretary, and as justice secretary had left senior officials feeling insulted on three occasions because of direct feedback”.

But he doubled-down on his attack on the process, saying “normal rules of evidence and procedural fairness were disapplied”, including a rule for all complaints to be made within three months.

“In my case, all the complaints were stored up for over three months, most over eight months, some for over four years – and then submitted in a coordinated way,” he claimed.

“And I was subject to trial by media for six months, fuelled by warped and fabricated accounts leaked by anonymous officials.”

A painful read for Dominic Raab

It’s taken five months to get this far.

Two complaints were upheld, the rest dismissed.

There’s a lot that Dominic Raab will have found very painful to read.

There’s a lot that also suggests he doesn’t accept the accusations of bullying – although there are findings that he behaved improperly, he doesn’t believe he did so even now.

The document goes into inordinate detail – Mr Raab admitted that he was inquisitorial, direct, impatient, and fastidious.

He is admitting some bits of behaviour that he thinks are absolutely fine.

Clearly what he wants to do is make the case that different interpretations of behaviour are what’s going on here.

But as you get into the report, you can see that views differed, and it was the precise nature of the way that Mr Raab liked to conduct his work with his officials that caused “distress”, perhaps even harm to the health of the people around him.

Labour’s Sir Keir accused Mr Raab of “whining” when the public wanted to hear about things that mattered to them.

“There is a bigger picture here,” he said. “We have got a cost of living crisis, there is the future of the NHS that is really, really important… and we are mired in talking about the weaknesses and the inability of the government to actually deliver anything for the people of this country.

“I don’t know why Dominic Raab thinks in the middle of a cost of living crisis that anybody wants to hear about his whining about having to resign.

“What I think everybody wants is strong leadership and that has been palpably absent here.

“Why on earth was Raab appointed in the first place? Why on earth didn’t the prime minister act more quickly? Why on earth isn’t the government laser focuses on the cost of living crisis and the absolute mess of the NHS that they have made?”

The civil service union, the FDA, called for an independent inquiry into ministerial bullying following the findings of the report.

General secretary Dave Penman said: “This resignation is not a vindication of the current system, it’s a damning indictment of the inadequacy of a process that relies solely on the prime minister of the day to enforce standards.”

Mike Clancy, the boss of another civil service union Prospect, also said there had been “a toxic culture at the top of government for too long with civil servants and public trust paying the price for this chaos”, calling on Mr Sunak to now “clean out the rest of the stables”.

He added: “These issues go to the heart of the anger and distrust many people feel towards the way our country runs. It is time for ministers to step up and to start restoring trust both for civil servants and the good of the country.”

Mr Raab was appointed by Mr Sunak after he took power in October, and less than 48 hours ago he was sat alongside the PM at Prime Minister’s Questions.

Allegations surfaced about Mr Raab back in November, with former staff claiming he created a “culture of fear” in their departments.

He denied the allegations and requested an investigation into himself after two formal complaints were made.

As the weeks rolled on, more accusations came to light, with one report suggesting as many as 24 complaints had been made.

Mr Sunak has come under pressure over what he knew about Mr Raab’s alleged conduct, with a source telling political editor Beth Rigby the PM was informed about Mr Raab’s “unacceptable behaviour” before appointing him as his deputy and justice secretary.

Downing Street said Mr Sunak was “not aware” of any “formal complaints” about Mr Raab when he appointed him, but Number 10 did not deny concerns had been expressed informally.

Who could take over as the next justice secretary?

They will be the 10th justice secretary in 10 years and will also serve as lord chancellor, responsible for protecting and upholding the rule of law and independence of the judiciary.

For this reason, it is often the case that MPs with legal experience – normally as barristers – are the typical picks for the role.

Some names in the frame:

• Lucy Frazer: Currently culture secretary. Ex-solicitor general and junior minister at the MoJ. Former barrister.

• Victoria Prentis: Currently attorney general. Ex-senior government lawyer. Held several junior ministerial posts. Served four years on the justice select committee.

• Victoria Atkins: Currently financial secretary to the Treasury. Was a junior minister at the MoJ. Former criminal barrister.

• Oliver Dowden: Currently Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster based in the Cabinet Office. Considered a favourite. Seen as one of Mr Sunak’s closest and most trusted political allies.

Mr Raab’s departure follows Mr Sunak’s decision to dismiss Tory party chairman Nadhim Zahawi from his post in January after the former chancellor was found to have broken the ministerial code over his tax affairs.

World

Israeli military announces ‘tactical pause’ in fighting in parts of Gaza amid hunger crisis

Published

4 hours ago

July 27, 2025

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Israeli military announces 'tactical pause' in fighting in parts of Gaza amid hunger crisis

Israel has begun a pause in fighting in three areas of Gaza to address the worsening humanitarian situation.

The IDF said it would halt fighting in three areas, Muwasi, Deir al-Balah and Gaza City, from 10am to 8pm local time until further notice, beginning today.

In a statement, the IDF said it would also establish secure routes to help the UN and aid agencies deliver food and other supplies.

Israel’s announcement of what it calls a “tactical pause” in fighting comes after it resumed airdrops of aid into Gaza.

While the IDF reiterated claims there is “no starvation” in Gaza, it said the airdrops would include “seven pallets of aid containing flour, sugar and canned food to be provided by international organisations”.

Reports suggest aid has already been dropped into Gaza, with some injured after fighting broke out.

In other developments, Bob Geldof has accused Israeli authorities of “lying” about starvation in the territory – telling Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips the IDF is “dangling food in front of starving, panicked, exhausted mothers”.

He told Sky News: “This month, up to now, 1,000 children or 1,000 people have died of starvation. I’m really not interested in what either of these sides are saying.”

Israel cut off all supplies to Gaza from the start of March. It then reopened aid centres with new restrictions in May, but said the supply had to be controlled to prevent it from being stolen by Hamas militants.

On Saturday, reports referencing US government data said there was no evidence Hamas had stolen aid from UN agencies.

The IDF’s international spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani, described such reports as “fake news” and said Hamas thefts have been “well documented”.

Airdrops ‘expensive and inefficient’

It comes as the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said as of Saturday, 127 people have died from malnutrition-related causes, including 85 children.

They include a five-month-old girl who weighed less than when she was born, with a doctor at Nasser Hospital describing it as a case of “severe, severe starvation”.

Health workers have also been weakened by hunger, with some putting themselves on IV drips so they can keep treating badly malnourished patients.

On Friday, Israel said it would allow foreign countries to airdrop aid into Gaza – but the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has warned this will not reverse “deepening starvation”.

UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini described the method as “expensive” and “inefficient”, adding: “It is a distraction and screensmoke. A manmade hunger can only be addressed by political will.

“Lift the siege, open the gates and guarantee safe movements and dignified access to people in need.”

UNRWA has the equivalent of 6,000 trucks in Jordan and Egypt waiting for permission to enter Gaza, he added.

MSF, also known as Doctors Without Borders, warned on Friday that 25% of young children and pregnant women in Gaza are now malnourished, and said the lack of food and water on the ground was “unconscionable”.

The UN also estimates Israeli forces have killed more than 1,000 people seeking food, the majority near the militarised distribution sites of the US-backed aid distribution scheme run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

In a statement on Friday, the IDF had said it “categorically rejects the claims of intentional harm to civilians”, and reports of incidents at aid distribution sites were “under examination”.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) has also previously disputed these deaths were connected with its organisation’s operations, with director Johnnie Moore telling Sky News: “We just want to feed Gazans. That’s the only thing that we want to do.”

World

Bob Geldof accuses Israeli authorities of ‘lying’ about starvation in Gaza

Published

7 hours ago

July 27, 2025

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Bob Geldof accuses Israeli authorities of 'lying' about starvation in Gaza

Bob Geldof has accused the Israeli authorities of “lying” about starvation in Gaza – after Israel’s government spokesperson claimed there was “no famine caused by Israel”.

Earlier this week, David Mencer claimed that Hamas “starves its own people” while on The News Hour with Mark Austin, denying that Israel was responsible for mass hunger in Gaza.

Appearing on Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, Geldof said the claims are false.

Follow latest: Gaza aid airdrops a ‘smokescreen’ and ‘distraction’

Sir Trevor asked the Live Aid organiser: “The Israeli view is that there is no famine caused by Israel, there’s a manmade shortage, but it’s been engineered by Hamas.

“I guess the Israelis would say we don’t see much criticism from your side of Hamas.”

In response, Geldof said “that’s a false equivalence” and “the Israeli authorities are lying”.

The singer then added: “They’re lying. [Benjamin] Netanyahu lies, is a liar. The IDF are lying. They’re dangling food in front of starving, panicked, exhausted mothers.

“And while they arrive to accept the tiny amount of food that this sort of set up pantomime outfit, the Gaza Humanitarian Front, I would call it, as they dangle it, then they’re shot wantonly.

“This month, up to now, 1,000 children or 1,000 people have died of starvation. I’m really not interested in what either of these sides are saying.”

He added: “If the newsfeeds and social feeds weren’t so censored in Israel, I imagine that the Israeli people would not permit what has been done in their name.”

Asked about the UK government’s reaction, Geldof said it was “not enough”.

“This is a distraction thing about ‘let’s recognise the state ‘ – absolutely, it should have been done ages ago, but it’s not going to make any material difference,” he said, referring to calls for Sir Keir Starmer to recognise Palestine as a state.

In the Sky News interview earlier this week, Mr Mencer added: “This suffering exists because Hamas made it so. Here are the facts. Aid is flowing, through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Millions of meals are being delivered directly to civilians.”

He also claimed that, since May, more than 4,400 aid trucks had entered Gaza carrying supplies.

It comes after MSF, also known as Doctors Without Borders, warned 25% of young children and pregnant women in Gaza are now malnourished.

The charity said Israel’s “deliberate use of starvation as a weapon” has reached unprecedented levels, and said that at one of its clinics in Gaza City, rates of severe malnutrition in children under five have trebled over the past two weeks.

MSF then described the lack of food and water on the ground “unconscionable”.

In a statement to Sky News, an Israeli security official said that “despite the false claims that are being spread, the State of Israel does not limit the number of humanitarian aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip”.

It then blamed other groups for issues delivering aid. They said: “Over the past month, we have witnessed a significant decline in the collection of aid from the crossings into the Gaza Strip by international aid organisations.

“The delays in collection by the UN and international organisations harm the situation and the food security of Gaza’s residents.”

The IDF also told Sky News: “The IDF allows the American civilian organisation (GHF) to distribute aid to Gaza residents independently, and operates in proximity to the new distribution zones to enable the distribution alongside the continuation of IDF operational activities in the Gaza Strip.

“Following incidents in which harm to civilians who arrived at distribution facilities was reported, thorough examinations were conducted in the Southern Command and instructions were issued to forces in the field following lessons learned.

“The aforementioned incidents are under review by the competent authorities in the IDF.”

World

‘I still have hope’: Parents of IDF soldier taken hostage by Hamas fear he’ll be one of last freed

Published

7 hours ago

July 27, 2025

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'I still have hope': Parents of IDF soldier taken hostage by Hamas fear he'll be one of last freed

Yehuda searches through a downstairs room looking for a plastic bag containing the most precious of objects.

It’s a small, blackened Rubik’s Cube that belongs to Yehuda’s son Nimrod – one of 20 living Israeli hostages still being held by the terrorist group Hamas in Gaza.

It was found in Nimrod’s burnt-out tank after the October 7th attacks.

“He likes PlayStation and Rubik’s Cube,” says Nimrod’s mother, Vicky.

“They found the Rubik’s Cube in the tank. It was complete but a little bit dark and they brought it back to us.”

We spoke to Nimrod’s parents Yehuda and Vicky about the emotional rollercoaster hostage families in Israel are going through – as hope rises and fades of a ceasefire agreement with Hamas.

“I still have hope that maybe I will see Nimrod again,” says Vicky.

“It almost breaks my heart because I still had expectation,” she says – in spite of the latest failure to find resolution in talks between Israel and Hamas in Doha.

“But I still have hope that maybe something good will happen,” she says.

Vicky says: “We heard [during] the last weeks, President Trump saying we will hear about a ceasefire soon – next week – in a few days.

“We heard our prime minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] say visiting Washington and meeting Trump was very successful – and heard members of the coalition talking about our prime minister eventually understanding he needs to end the war. But until now nothing.”

The delegation coming back to Israel doesn’t mean a total collapse of ceasefire talks, but US envoy Steve Witkoff said the response to the latest ceasefire proposals by Hamas showed “a lack of desire”.

And so the rollercoaster of emotion for the hostage families continues.

Middle East latest: Gaza aid airdrops a ‘smokescreen’

Nimrod’s father Yehuda Cohen said: “Of course it’s a disappointment but it’s not the first one. A long time ago I learned not to get my expectations up so the disappointment won’t be too deep.

“The solution is very simple – I’ve got it on my shirt – ceasefire and hostage deal. Meaning the only way to get all the hostages is ending the war.”

Yehuda shows us Nimrod’s bedroom at the family home. It’s exactly as it was when Nimrod left to return to his army duties a few days before the October 7 attacks.

Except in a corner, there’s a box of uniforms and personal possessions, including a wallet which Nimrod had left at his army outpost – all returned to the family by the IDF.

It’s just like the bedroom of any other teenager – Nimrod was 19 when he was kidnapped. But two birthdays have passed since then. Nimrod is 21 now – a milestone spent in captivity a few weeks ago.

It’s believed there are 20 living Israeli hostages in Gaza – all male – and that Hamas is holding the bodies of 27 more hostages who have been killed.

But even if a deal is agreed, the first phase is expected to secure the release of only half of the living hostages – and Nimrod’s parents say their son, as a soldier, is not likely to be one of the 10.

Yehuda says: “A partial deal means that the probability my son will be on that list is close to zero. So he’s going to be one of the last ones to be released, and that’s why we have to fight.”