The former cabinet minister Jacob Rees-Mogg has said “we mustn’t be too snowflakey” about bullying allegations levelled against the deputy prime minister, Dominic Raab.
Raab, who is also justice secretary, faces formal complaints involving at least 24 civil servants over alleged bullying, covering his spells at the Ministry of Justice, Foreign Office (FCDO) and the Brexit department.
He has stayed in post during the inquiry and vowed to “thoroughly rebut and refute” the complaints. He has said he is confident he “acted professionally” throughout his time in three different cabinet posts.
Officials close to the inquiry are said to have been shocked by some of the claims that have emerged, including individuals being physically sick before meetings, regularly in tears and, in more than one case, left feeling suicidal as a result of the alleged behaviour.
However, appearing on Sky News on Tuesday, Rees-Mogg, who served as Brexit opportunities secretary and leader of the House of Commons under Boris Johnson, and was business secretary in Liz Truss’s short-lived administration, said there was a concern the handling of the allegations was “a bit snowflakey”.
“We have to be slightly careful around the bullying allegations but also we mustn’t be too snowflakey about it,” he said. “People need to be able to say this job has not been done well enough and needs to be done better.
“It’s a very difficult line to judge. It is not a straightforward issue in most cases. It is ‘how did someone react, what did somebody say, is it reasonable to demand from senior and well-paid professionals a level of good service’, and then you have to judge whether that line has been overstepped.
“But I do worry that we are getting a bit snowflakey about this.”
He added: “I think it’s completely sensible that the lord chancellor remains fully in post while the investigation takes place and then the prime minister makes a judgment as to whether or not these allegations are serious or not.”
Dave Penman, the general secretary of the FDA union, which represents senior civil servants, said: “Even by Rees-Mogg’s standards this is outrageous. A former leader of the house, trivialising bullying that we know has ruined lives and careers. Not only should he be ashamed of himself, but his leader and party should distance themselves from this.”
According to the Times, the former FCDO permanent secretary Simon McDonald has given evidence criticising Raab to the official inquiry into his behaviour led by Adam Tolley KC.
A civil servant who worked with Raab told the newspaper he was “very rude and abrasive, sometimes totally randomly” and for “arbitrary” reasons. Officials also tell the paper that Raab belittled them for minor lapses and left them in tears.
The inquiry, which began in December, is expected to conclude within weeks after Tolley held lengthy sessions with complainants.
In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org.
