LONDON: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak faced pressure from the opposition on Wednesday as one of his close aides and troubled ministers resigned from the cabinet pending an investigation into allegations of bullying against him. Sir Gavin Williamson, who was yet Minister of State without portfolio, was accused of abusive behavior towards fellow Conservative Party colleagues and civil servants, after which he posted his resignation on Twitter. Sunak said he accepted Williamson’s resignation “with great sadness” and thanked him for his “personal support and loyalty”. “Your commitment to successive conservative governments and the party over the years has been unwavering,” he said. However, the opposition has branded the episode as a sign of “poor judgment and leadership” by Sunak, and Labor Party leader Sir Keir Starmer will use the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQ) in the House of Commons to discuss further can be stacked under pressure. issue.
Controversy over Williamson’s conduct has been brewing over the weekend, with reports that outgoing Conservative Party chairman Jake Berry called the newly appointed prime minister about a complaint of ‘bullying’ against Williamson on 24 October, a day before his appointment to the Sunak cabinet. Told.
Downing Street maintained the new prime minister “knew there was a disagreement” but did not know the “substance” of the messages until they were published by The Sunday Times newspaper.
pic.twitter.com/3lMzmHqzsN— Gavin Williamson (@GavinWilliamson) 8 November 2022
“It is a damaging reflection of a weak prime minister,” said Labor deputy leader Angela Renner. “Sage Sunak appointed Gavin Williamson with full knowledge of serious allegations about his conduct and has repeatedly expressed confidence in him. This is yet another example of Rishi Sunak’s poor judgment and weak leadership. It is clear that He is stuck with the dirty backroom deals he has made. To dodge a vote, and is unable to put the country before the party,” he said.
Another references the reappointment of Suella Braverman as UK Home Secretary after she was forced to resign for breaking ministerial rules by sending an official document from her personal email. The opposition has called it an internal agreement to ensure the support of its Tory wing for his position as prime minister.
Daisy Cooper, deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, said, “Sage Sunak has serious questions about why he hired Gavin Williamson, then stood by him instead of sacking him. His promise to lead a government of integrity has now been broken.” Is.”
Williamson is believed to have been instrumental in working behind the scenes to prevent Boris Johnson from contesting the leadership election against Sunak in the days after Liz Truss resigned as prime minister last month.
Denying the allegations, Williamson said in his resignation letter that he denies the “characteristic” claims of his “past conduct”, but felt they “did distracted from the good work being done by the government”. Huh. This refers to some derogatory text messages allegedly sent to former Tory party whip, Wendy Morton, that were ignored during Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.
These were published in ‘The Sunday Times’ and others have since come forward to allege intimidation behavior while Williamson was a cabinet minister under previous prime ministers.
He has since been informed of the parliamentary bullying watchdog, the Independent Complaints and Complaints Scheme, and says he has apologized to the recipient of the text messages and the complaints process to “clear my name of any wrongdoing”. will follow.