Public ‘will not wear Tory whitewash’ over Raab allegations, Rayner warns

Angela Rayner has said there must be a “genuinely independent investigation” into bullying allegations made against Dominic Raab and warned that the public “will not wear another Tory whitewash”.

The deputy Prime Minister has faced accusations of bullying civil servants in his previous government roles at the Foreign Office and the Ministry of Justice. Raab requested today that Rishi Sunak launch an investigation into his conduct after two formal complaints were made against him.

A No 10 spokesperson announced this afternoon that the government will appoint an “independent” investigator to lead the inquiry in the continuing absence of an official independent ethics adviser. The government has been without an ethics adviser since Lord Geidt resigned from the role in June.

The Labour deputy leader said: “Just an hour after the deputy Prime Minister told the Commons the appointment of an independent adviser was well under way, the Prime Minister must now explain why a new ethics watchdog will not be in place to investigate his deputy’s misconduct.

“And he needs to provide assurances that the findings will be transparent and acted upon. Rishi Sunak promised it would be one of his first acts as Prime Minister, but it has been five months since Lord Geidt resigned, leaving a gaping hole in scrutiny at the heart of government.

“A genuinely independent investigation into Dominic Raab is needed to uphold the ministerial code and shed light on these serious bullying allegations. The public will not wear another Tory whitewash.”

The Guardian reported on Friday that civil servants working at the Ministry of Justice were offered “respite or a route out” of the department when Raab was reappointed as Justice Secretary last month due to concerns some staff were still traumatised by his behaviour during his previous time in the role.

Multiple sources told the paper that Raab had created a “culture of fear” when he first held the role of Justice Secretary between September 2021 and September 2022. Raab was reportedly warned by permanent secretary Antonia Romeo on his return to the department that he must treat staff professionally and with respect.

The Guardian reported on Monday that Raab was warned on several occasions about his treatment of staff during his time as Foreign Secretary, resulting in the then permanent secretary at the department Simon McDonald informally reporting his concerns to the Cabinet Office’s propriety and ethics team.

Addressing the Commons during Prime Minister’s Questions today, Raab – who was standing in for the Prime Minister during his time at the G20 summit in Bali – said recruitment for a new ethics adviser is “under way” and “taking place at pace”.

In his resignation letter to then Prime Minister Boris Johnson in June, Geidt said he had been asked to advise on the government’s intention to consider “measures which risk a deliberate and purposeful breach of the ministerial code”. Geidt declared that the request had placed him “in an impossible and odious position”.

The letter continued: “The idea that a Prime Minister might to any degree be in the business of deliberately breaching his own code is an affront. A deliberate breach, or even an intention to do so, would be to suspend the provisions of the code to suit a political end.”

Geidt’s predecessor as ethics adviser, Sir Alex Allan, also resigned back in 2020, after being overruled by Johnson over a report into allegations of bullying made against Priti Patel.