But now he has been reinstated as cabinet secretary, responsible for the Ministry of Justice, and as deputy prime minister, he faces questions about his conduct during his previous stints in the roles, as well as in other departments. Sources close to Mr Raab disputed the claims, with a number of his Tory colleagues backing him as an “excellent and kind boss”. However, as the categories continue to emerge, let’s take a look at what has been reported so far: Politics Live: Prime Minister on ‘biggest state threat’ to UK economy “Rest or Exit” The first claims against Mr Raab appeared in the Guardian on Friday about his time at the Ministry of Justice between September 2021 and September 2022 under Boris Johnson. The newspaper said about 15 senior civil servants in his private office were offered “leave or exit” after his return was announced, amid concerns that some were still traumatized from working for him. Multiple Justice Department sources also said he had previously created a “culture of fear” in the department, claiming he was “humble rather than demanding” with civil servants and was “very rude and aggressive”, adding:[He] he wasn’t just unprofessional, he was a bully.” But a ministry spokesman said there was “zero tolerance for bullying across the public service”, adding: “The Deputy Prime Minister leads a professional department, driving significant reforms, where civil servants are valued and the level of ambition is high. “ Tomatoes and riots Within hours of the story breaking, two more emerged from Mr Raab’s previous stint at the MoJ. One at the Sun claimed he had thrown tomatoes from his salad at staff. And another in the Mirror said he had been nicknamed “The Incinerator” because of how quickly he “burns” employees. But the deputy prime minister’s spokesman called the salad attack claim “complete nonsense” and denied high staff turnover in his departments. All three articles also claimed that the permanent secretary, Antonia Romeo, warned Mr Raab to treat staff with respect on his return, with a source, who was not in the room at the time, saying she had “read him the riot act’. . Image: Boris Johnson appointed Dominic Raab to his cabinet after taking office in 2019 On Saturday, a sole source told ITV News that the Cabinet had been made aware of concerns about Mr Raab’s behavior when he was Brexit secretary in 2018. The Observer picked up the story, saying a “formal expression of concern” had been sent to a senior member of the Department for Exiting the European Union, alleging “unprofessional, even intimidating, behavior by the minister towards his private office”. However, the Cabinet Office told the paper it had “no record of any formal complaints”. Research and support On Sunday, the spotlight fell on Mr Raab’s time as Foreign Secretary, between July 2020 and September 2021. An investigation leaked to ITV News shows eight people working in his private office at the time claimed they were bullied or harassed at work, while 15 staff reported seeing another person being bullied or treated unfairly. The results were anonymous, however, neither the perpetrator nor the victim could be identified. In response, a spokesman for Mr Raab said he had “high standards, works hard and expects a lot from his team as well as himself” but that he “worked well with officials” and “always acts with the utmost professionalism “. As Rishi Sunak traveled to the G20 summit in Bali on Sunday night, he faced questions about Mr Raab’s reappointment but insisted he did not “recognise that characterization” of his colleague and was “ignoring” any formal complaints against of. . A spokeswoman for Number 10 also said: “As the Prime Minister has said in the past, people in public life should treat others with care and respect. These are principles that this government will support. “There are established procedures by which public officials can file complaints. These procedures allow allegations to be reviewed and considered with due process and a fair hearing.” Image: Rishi Sunak lends his support to his deputy while on a flight to Bali for the G20 When it came out on Monday, an interview with a former top official at the State Department during Mr. Raab’s tenure set tongues wagging again. Former permanent secretary Lord Simon Macdonald was asked on LBC if the bullying claims of the past few days were true and he replied: “Yes.” He added: “Dominik Raab is one of the most driven people I’ve ever worked for, he was a tough boss. “Maybe they’re euphemisms, but I worked closely with him and I didn’t see everything that happened.” Within hours, there was another story from the Guardian, which claimed that Mr Raab had been warned about his behavior towards Foreign Office officials on a number of occasions by none other than Lord MacDonald. The newspaper also claimed that Lord MacDonald had several informal conversations with the head of the fitness and ethics team at the Cabinet Office for him between 2019 and 2020 about the matter. A spokesman for Mr Raab told the Guardian: “Dominic has had frequent discussions with his permanent secretary at the Foreign Office about how to best run the department and ensure it operates to the highest standards in difficult circumstances, such as during of COVID”. Behavior and high standards On Tuesday Lord MacDonald was also back on the airwaves, speaking to Times Radio about Mr Raab. He went further than he did in his LBC interview, saying many colleagues were “scared” to go into the then foreign secretary’s office when he was in charge. The colleague said Mr Raab “didn’t know the impact of his behavior on the people who worked for him and couldn’t get him to see that impact”, adding: “Colleagues didn’t complain to me formally, he was something of a professional their. proud to cope, but many were afraid to go to his office.’ And he said the minister’s defense was that he “treated everyone in the building the same way – he was as tough and controlling with junior ministers and senior officials as he was with his private secretaries”. But again, Mr Raab’s spokesman insisted he had “acted with professionalism and integrity in all his government roles”, adding: “He has an excellent track record of driving positive change in many government departments by working well with officials. “He holds everyone, and above all himself, to the high standards that the British people would expect of their government.” Image: Lord McDonald was the most senior civil servant at the Foreign Office during Mr Raab’s tenure. There was another accusation – this time from Labour’s Lisa Nandy, who shadowed Mr Raab when he was at the Foreign Office. He told Sky News he had heard “a number of rumors that this was a pattern of behaviour”, adding: “It’s been something of an open secret in Westminster over the last few years, there’s a problem at the justice department, there’s a problem at the Foreign Office – it was obviously aimed at especially in women. “I think it’s really damning that Rishi Sunak appointed Dominic Raab to this position knowing that this is potentially an issue.” But Mr Raab’s spokesman “categorically” denied the claim, while his team said suggestions he had a problem with the woman were “nonsense”. A source close to Mr Raab said: “This is baseless mudslinging with no basis in fact and undermines serious cases of bullying and misconduct.” On Wednesday, all eyes will be on Mr Raab once again as he takes to the dispatch box to cover Prime Minister’s Questions for Mr Sunak while he is away at the G20 summit.
