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First Minister Michelle Donnellan has come under increasing pressure to repay the £15,000 compensation paid by taxpayers in a defamation case against her as she insisted she still had confidence in her ministers.
Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer said on Thursday that it was “absolutely insulting” that British citizens were forced to pay damages and legal costs against an academic after the science secretary falsely accused him of supporting Hamas. ” he said.
I It was revealed on Tuesday that the taxpayer had offered a settlement to Heriot-Watt University professor Kate Sun after Mr Donnellan falsely claimed he shared “extremist” views on social media.
The Labor leader said on Thursday: [the public] They feel every day that nothing more can be done to help them. People are really struggling to pay their bills and the government is saying, “We can’t afford to help you anymore.”
“And then you have a minister who says things he shouldn’t have said and has to take legal action and pay damages and costs, and then he says, ‘The taxpayers will pay for that.’ Completely insulting. is.”
Leader of the House of Commons Penny Mordaunt defended Mr Donnellan on Thursday, saying he had shown his “dignity” by refusing to pay him redundancy pay.
The science secretary was entitled to a paycheck of around £17,000 after leaving his post as education secretary in 2022, after just 36 hours in office.
Mr Donnellan, who resigned from his post in a flurry of resignations hours before Boris Johnson decided to resign as Prime Minister, was under huge pressure from the public to refuse the funding.
Mordaunt told the House of Commons on Thursday: [over] She received £16,000 but she never took it and returned it to the department as it was the right thing to do.
“So I want people to remember that, it speaks volumes to the character of this honorable woman and how much she values the taxpayers’ money that we’re talking about.”
Rishi Sunak also backed Mr Donnellan on Thursday, insisting No 10 had retracted the false claims and had “fully accepted that the person in question is not an extremist”.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesperson said Ms Donnellan had authorized the government to follow “established precedent” and pay damages on her behalf, given that she had made false allegations in her capacity as a minister. Stated.
This comes after No.10 confirmed that Mr Donnellan had received legal advice from a government lawyer before drafting a letter attacking two academics that triggered the defamation suit. That was it.
In a letter to the UK Research and Innovation Secretary in October, the Science Secretary accused two academics on the Nationally Funded Research Agency’s advisory group of supporting Hamas and called for them to be suspended.
The letter, shared by Donnellan on X, misinterpreted a post shared by academics commenting on the Israel-Hamas war. UKRI on Tuesday cleared them of any wrongdoing following an independent investigation and invited them to resume their duties.
The Prime Minister’s press secretary said Mr Donnellan had taken legal advice before sending the letter to UKRI chief executive Ottolin Reiser, but government lawyers advised her not to share the letter publicly on social media. He declined to say whether he had approved it.
The Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) also declined to comment when contacted. I Whether government lawyers gave the green light to share the letter to X’s 38,000 followers, leading to a defamation lawsuit.
This comes amid mounting questions over who knew Mr Donnellan’s letter was sent on government-stamped letterhead prior to publication.
The Union of Universities (UCU), which represents both academics, called on Mr Donnellan to resign.
UCU general secretary Joe Grady said: “We have been forced to conclude that Mr Donnellan’s position is untenable.”
“He has neither the credibility of the academic community nor the good standards of professional conduct. She must resign,” Grady said.
Prime Minister Jeremy Hunt said on Thursday he had not personally approved the £15,000 payment by taxpayers.
“I do not believe that I have done so because the Prime Minister will only approve much larger sums than that, but it is normal practice for government lawyers to assist government ministers in cases brought against them in the course of their duties.” he said. BBC.
A government spokesperson said: “There is established precedent under multiple administrations that ministers are provided with legal support and representation on matters relating to their actions and responsibilities as ministers, as in this case. ” he said.
“The Secretary of State has always received appropriate advice from relevant officials.
“A total of £15,000 was paid without any admission of liability. This approach will reduce the overall cost to the taxpayer that could be incurred by a lengthy litigation, whatever the outcome. The aim is to reduce.”