Sunak reinstated Raab in his previous role as Justice Secretary.
London:
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak faced fresh questions on Saturday over his choice of senior executives after his number two was accused of behaving aggressively towards staff.
The controversy over Dominic Raab, who is deputy prime minister and justice secretary, came after fellow Sunak aide Gavin Williamson was kicked out of the new government due to alleged bullying.
Raab, Sunak’s most vocal supporter in the summer Conservative leadership race against Liz Truss, was brought back into cabinet when Truss was ousted after only six weeks as prime minister.
Sunak reinstated her in her previous role of Justice Secretary, where she presided over a “culture of fear” according to the Guardian newspaper.
It said that around 15 senior civil servants in the ministry had been offered “look outs” for various government jobs if they felt unable to serve because of Raab’s past behaviour.
Meanwhile, The Sun newspaper reported that Raab once threw a tomato from a salad across the room in anger during a meeting – which a minister’s spokesman called “nonsense”.
More generally, the spokesperson said: “Dominic has high standards, works hard, and expects a lot from his team as well as himself.
“He has worked well with officials across a number of government departments to drive the government’s agenda in Whitehall and always acts with the utmost professionalism.”
The craze was already under fire for reappointing Williamson to a ministerial role, despite being told he was under investigation for allegedly bullying another senior Conservative.
The prime minister also faced criticism for reinstating Suella Braverman as interior minister only six days after she was forced to quit the truce cabinet due to a security breach.
The opposition Labor Party pointed to those controversies as it branded the latest allegations “deeply troubling”, calling for an investigation into Sunak to be launched.
“With every new scandal and sordid deal, it becomes more apparent that he is a weak leader who puts party management before the national interest,” said Labor Party deputy leader Angela Rayner.
There was no immediate comment from Sunak, who is preparing to unveil an emergency economic package next week after Truss’s tax-slashing budget sparked a financial crisis.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV Staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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