Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Deputy PM Dominic Raab latest in line of ministers accused of bullying

© NEIL HALL/EPA-EFE/ShutterstockDominic Raab was alleged to have thrown tomatoes in a fit of anger
Dominic Raab was alleged to have thrown tomatoes in a fit of anger

Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab is the latest UK Government minister to be accused of mistreating civil servants and creating a “climate of fear” among staff.

The fresh allegations raised questions about Rishi Sunak’s judgment after cabinet minister Sir Gavin Williamson quit last week vowing to clear his name over bullying claims.

Raab reportedly earned the nickname “The Incinerator” because he “burned through” staff during his time as Justice Secretary. He was also accused of throwing tomatoes from a salad across a room in a fit of anger – an allegation denied by his spokesman.

One former civil servant reportedly said: “On more than one occasion I saw him blow up at civil servants, sometimes very senior ones, in meetings.

“While he was demanding, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, the way he spoke to people was uncomfortable to witness. He was very rude and aggressive.”

Bullying allegations have dogged the Conservative Party in recent years. In 2020, a probe into the-then Home Secretary Priti Patel found she had “not consistently met the high standards required by the ministerial code of treating her civil servants with consideration and respect” and cited examples of shouting and swearing.

Tory MPs defended Raab after reports in The Guardian revealed staff were reportedly offered a “route out” of his department when he was reinstated as Justice Secretary in October.

Raab was removed from that role, which he had held since September 2021, by Liz Truss when she entered No 10, but reinstated by Sunak.

Labour said the accusations were troubling and raised questions about Sunak’s judgment.

Labour’s shadow levelling-up secretary Alex Norris MP said: “We’re only reading in the last sort of 24 hours some of the issues relating to the deputy prime minister and what he may or may not have thrown and it’s important that that’s given the full airing.

“I just don’t think government ministers should be bullying civil servants and we can make this as complicated as we want in terms of what language people use or, or what other behaviours people exhibit in public, but fundamentally, I just don’t think they should do that.”

The Ministry of Justice said: “There is zero tolerance for bullying across the civil service.

“The deputy prime minister leads a professional department, driving forward major reforms, where civil servants are valued and the level of ambition is high.”