(London) Accused of harassment, British Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab resigned on Friday, a blow to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, of whom he was a close ally and who had promised a government of integrity after the scandals of the Johnson era.
An independent report delivered to the Prime Minister on Thursday found that Dominic Raab, also Minister of Justice, had morally harassed civil servants in previous ministerial positions.
“I had requested this investigation and had pledged to resign if it established any facts of harassment. I believe it is important to keep my word,” Mr. Raab wrote in a letter to the prime minister and posted on Twitter.
This investigation was launched following eight complaints about his behavior when he was Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Brexit or during a previous visit to the Ministry of Justice.
According to Raab, the report, which has not yet been made public, “dismissed all but two complaints.”
He has always denied these accusations which have poisoned the government for months and have raised numerous criticisms from the opposition. He continues to defend himself in his resignation letter, deeming these accusations “false”.
“By setting the threshold for harassment so low, the inquiry sets a dangerous precedent” for government conduct, he said.
“Ministers should be able to directly criticize” the work of senior civil servants, he adds, conceding that “of course this has to be done within reason”.
The British daily The Guardian reported in November that the appointment of Dominic Raab to Justice had caused anxiety for many civil servants, with some considering resigning.
According to the newspaper, ministry staff had described a “culture of fear” within a department headed by a “rude” and “aggressive” “bully”.
For its part, the tabloid The Sun indicated that Mr. Raab would have thrown tomatoes in a fit of anger during a meeting, which had at the time denied by his spokesperson.
In February, Mr. Raab assured Sky News that he had always “behaved in a professional manner throughout his tenure”. But “if an allegation of moral harassment is confirmed, I will resign”.
Again on Thursday, Downing Street displayed its “total confidence” in its Deputy Prime Minister, while claiming to “study carefully the conclusions of the report”.
He is the third minister to quit Rishi Sunak’s government after various accusations, a further stain on the prime minister’s promise to show “integrity, professionalism and accountability” in office after the succession of scandals under Boris Johnson.
In November, Gavin Williamson, a minister without portfolio, resigned after accusations of harassment.
And in January, Rishi Sunak had to dismiss the president of the conservative party Nadhim Zahawi, who sat in this capacity on the council of ministers, for tax disputes.
The case falls badly for the Conservative government with less than two weeks of local elections which promise to be difficult for the majority in power for 13 years, especially when Rishi Sunak, in Downing Street since October, seemed to stabilize his party after months of scandals and falling in the polls.