Dominic Raab blames “activist civil servants” for his downfall (Dominic Raab resignation raises questions about Rishi Sunak’s judgment, 21 April). Rightly, the former Whitehall mandarins Simon McDonald and Bob Kerslake have dismissed this conspiracy theory. Raab’s fall from grace is just the latest example of macho Brexit fantasies about how the world should be colliding with reality. For rage at civil servants sticking up for their rights, read the traditional Eurosceptic hatred of “unelected Brussels bureaucrats”.
In Raab’s mind, he was only showing the hard-working “pace, standards and challenge” that “the public expect of ministers working on their behalf”. In reality, civil servants were petrified of disagreeing with him to the extent that some of them felt physically sick before meetings.
Joe McCarthy
Dublin, Ireland
• An obstructive and sceptical civil service is the essential protector of our national interest. It smells harmful policies such as Brexit a mile off and correctly identifies tantrums as the mark of a minister with no access to persuasion or argument. Despite a defensive pretence to the contrary, the last thing it is willing to supply is blind obedience – greatly to this country’s advantage.
Rod Tipple
Cambridge
• Your article notes that allegations of bullying can be highly subjective (‘Robustness’ or bullying: when does firm management cross the line?, 22 April). From my experience and training in handling matters of bullying (for which there is no legal definition) and harassment (for which there is), individual cases may often be fiendishly complex.
However, in coming to a judgment in specific cases, a clear question of principle exists as a test to be met: does the complainant have objectively reasonable grounds for subjectively feeling bullied? In his report, Adam Tolley KC uses the words “intimidating” and “unreasonably and persistently aggressive” when setting out his findings in relation to instances of Dominic Raab’s behaviour.
This choice of words contrasts starkly with the requirement for ministers to “treat all those with whom they come into contact with consideration and respect”. But more than that, Tolley’s no doubt carefully considered use of the word “unreasonably” makes it clear that, at least in some instances, Raab’s behaviour could objectively be regarded as amounting to bullying. The matter is more clearcut than some parties are making out.
David Metcalfe
Beacon Hill, Bath
• “The people of Britain will pay the price for this Kafkaesque saga,” said the headline on Dominic Raab’s opinion piece in the Daily Telegraph. If there is a price to pay, it will be peanuts compared to the price we are now paying for a failed justice system of which he was the minister in charge. We have record court backlogs, prisons overfull and understaffed, an underfunded probation service lacking experienced staff, and badly designed reforms of the parole board.
Catherine Dornan
Llandrindod Wells, Powys
• Dominic Raab claims he was only trying to deal with officials whom he believed had underperformed. That’s pretty rich coming from a foreign secretary who refused to leave his beach holiday while Afghanistan was being evacuated.
Stephen Kruger
Folkestone, Kent
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