“Climate of Fear” under Raab
Bullying allegations against Sunak’s justice minister
11/12/2022 1:51 p.m
Dominic Raab is a key ally of new British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. But several reports put the justice minister in a bad light: his employees were dealing with a “manipulative” and “aggressive” boss, who on one occasion even threw tomatoes around in anger.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is increasingly being criticized for his choice of personnel: just a few days after the resignation of one of his cabinet members, massive allegations against Justice Minister Dominic Raab, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, were made on Saturday. Among other things, the “Sun” reported that Raab once threw tomatoes from a salad across the room in a fit of rage. This was denied by a spokesman for the minister.
The Guardian also reported that Raab was feared for his leadership style and his dealings with subordinates. During Raab’s first term as Minister of Justice from September 2021 to September 2022 under the then Prime Minister Boris Johnson, there was a “climate of fear” and the head of department was “manipulative” and “aggressive”. Now that Raab is their manager again, many employees are quickly being transferred to other departments or government offices out of fear, the newspaper reported. The newspaper “Mirror” reported that Raab’s internal nickname was “incinerator” because he burned employees.
Raab is one of Sunak’s closest allies. The main opposition party, Labor, called the allegations “deeply disturbing” and accused Sunak of poor judgement. “With every new scandal and sleazy deal it becomes more and more apparent that he is a weak leader who puts the party ahead of the national interest,” said Labor Vice-President Angela Rayner. Sunak is breaking his promise of integrity in government.
Less than three weeks after Sunak had formed and presented his government team, the second member has been accused of bullying. Minister of State Gavin Williamson submitted his resignation on Tuesday. He is accused of sending threatening and otherwise inappropriate messages to MPs and former colleagues.