Whitehall sources said the deputy prime minister, who is facing two formal complaints over alleged bullying, had acted “so badly and inappropriately” at a high-level meeting earlier this year that the permanent secretary at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) was forced to call to senior officials of the then home minister, Priti Patel, to express his regret. An insider suggested that the top Justice Department official, Antonia Romeo, had taken the highly unusual step of apologizing on behalf of her minister to prevent the incident from escalating into a formal complaint. However, it is unclear whether Raab was aware of her actions at the time. No department denied that the apology call had taken place. A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “The Ministry of Justice is working with the Home Office and calls between officials to attend interagency meetings are standard procedure.” Rishi Sunak has faced questions over his decision to re-appoint Raab as justice secretary after a series of allegations about his behavior towards civil servants in three different departments, including the Ministry of Justice, the Foreign Office and the Brexit department . Allegations of his “bullying” have sparked calls for an inquiry into the “toxic culture” at the Foreign Office as he oversaw the chaotic withdrawal of British troops from Afghanistan, similar to the Home Office review following the Windrush scandal. The prime minister backed his deputy but agreed to launch an investigation into two official complaints made against him by civil servants who worked with him at the Foreign Office and the Ministry of Justice. However, the inquiry is on hold until No 10 appoints an outside agent to carry it out. Sunak is also under pressure to fill the post of independent ethics counsel, which has been vacant for five months. Raab has said in the past that he “never tolerated bullying” and “always tried to empower and empower” public servants. Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, said: “Dominic Raab leaves a trail of senior officials who are forced to spend their time apologizing for his toxic behavior and reading him the riot act, instead of focusing on making the British safe on our roads. “This shameful incident shows that his misbehavior is not just an embarrassment to the department he claims to lead, but is hindering the smooth running of government. “Rishi Sunak promised to bring integrity to the steps of No 10, but now the re-appointed MP is already facing an independent inquiry into his conduct with a series of revelations about his unacceptable behavior casting a shadow over his government.” The Guardian reported that his refusal to speak to some Foreign Office staff he considered a “waste of time” led to “blockages” during the evacuation to Afghanistan, with staff in two running departments forced to take sick leave due to of his alleged conduct. Sources claimed the deputy prime minister’s behavior exacerbated the chaotic exit of British forces during the Taliban takeover of Kabul in August 2021, which officials warned was “costly” and caused “long-lasting” damage. Allegations of Raab’s “bullying” behavior led Labor to call for an inquiry into the culture of the Foreign Office under Wendy Williams’ key and deputized review of the Home Office following the Windrose scandal. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. David Lammy, Labour’s shadow foreign secretary, said there appeared to be a “deeper trend of toxicity, dysfunction, bullying and declining morale” that could be “harming Britain’s influence on the world stage”. He also cited an internal civil service inquiry which found the Foreign Office was ranked in the bottom three for leadership: “There are now serious questions to be answered about whether ministers allegedly bullies have created a wider culture of toxicity in one of the major offices of the state. “Britain’s great diplomats deserve to have ministers who uphold the highest standards and treat them with dignity and respect. “Apart from individual investigations into Raab which are already underway, the FCDO needs an independent review of its culture to learn the lessons of the Tory failure so that a department which once boasted of being a model for diplomatic services across people do it again.” New figures, obtained by the Guardian, also reveal that no staff working in the Foreign Secretary’s private office left the department in 2017-19, when Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt were in charge. Raab led the department from July 2019 to September 2021 and his tenure has coincided with a rise in departures: 24% in the 2019/20 financial year, 28% in 2020/21 and 12% in 2021/22. Allies have suggested the departures were coincidental.
