Would You like a feature Interview?
All Interviews are 100% FREE of Charge
Dominic Raab declined to comment on the status of the bullying investigation against him, saying he “doesn’t apologize for having high standards.”
Downing Street launched an investigation into the deputy prime minister’s actions last month, claiming several current and former staff members were bullied and harassed by him.
Raab, who took office as attorney general in October, has faced eight formal complaints of alleged bullying, including at least five from senior officials working for the Ministry of Justice.
An independent investigation, led by Adam Tory KC, is also looking into complaints from Mr Raab’s time as foreign minister and Brexit minister.
He told the BBC this morning: I don’t think I did anything wrong.
“So, of course, I am always careful about how I behave. has high standards and makes no apologies for trying to move things forward.”
see more politics
Raab added that he was “confident” in his efforts throughout his tenure in government to “really move things forward, move things forward … in a professional way.”
He has repeatedly rejected calls to resign and this morning asked him to conduct an independent investigation himself, “rather than addressing this through something like ‘he said’ or an anonymous leak through the media.” claimed to have asked
However, the Deputy Prime Minister has been asked by senior Conservative Party officials to step down from his Cabinet role while a bullying complaint is investigated.
Former Conservative Party leader Jake Berry said last month that keeping Mr Raab would be “hard for the government to keep”, adding: “In the real world, people see this and say they don’t feel it. You’re right.”
This is according to Whitehall’s internal research, which found that one-third of staff in Raab’s ministry’s personal office said they had received a complaint from a colleague while serving in their current Department of Justice job in the past year. It came after it was revealed that he had allegedly been bullied and harassed.
Ten of the 33 people who worked most closely with the Attorney General said they were victims of bad behavior at work. That’s a four-fold increase from his previous year and higher than his 8% figure for civil servants overall.
An official who worked with Raab said he imposed “arbitrary” demands and was often “randomly” rude. His demands were often contradictory, they said, complaining that he was too late and that he wasn’t given the next.
Another official accused the Attorney General of throwing tomatoes from a pret-a-manger salad onto the table in frustration because he was “unsatisfied with the way the briefing was conducted.”
Mr Raab dismissed the allegations as “totally ridiculous” and said he “always acts with the utmost professionalism”.
No 10 has not provided details on when the investigation into the bullying allegations against Mr. Raab will end.
Mr Tory, a prominent attorney, is tasked with “establishing certain facts” about formal complaints filed against the Deputy Prime Minister.
He will report to Rishi Sunak, who will make the final determination as to whether Raab’s actions violated the ministerial order and whether he should resign.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said, “Bullying cannot be tolerated across civil servants. The deputy prime minister heads a specialized department that promotes large-scale reforms where civil servants are valued and have a high level of ambition.
“An independent investigation overseen by the Cabinet Office is ongoing, and until it is completed, it is inappropriate to comment further on the issues related to it.”
