A senior civil servant claims Gavin Williamson told them to ‘slit your throat’ in what they felt was a campaign of bullying
Good morning. Alastair Campbell, Tony Blair’s communications chief, is credited with devising a rule saying that, if a scandal continues to dominate the news for more than a certain number of days, the minister involved in it has to go. No one is quite sure what the exact number of days is (13, 11, a week? Campbell himself has forgotten), but the basic principle is sound, and that should be very worrying for Sir Gavin Williamson, the beleaguered Cabinet Office minister. On Friday last week Cat Neilan from Tortoise revealed that Wendy Morton, the former chief whip, had submitted a complaint to CCHQ about Williamson. The story has now reached day five and, far from going away, it’s snowballing. Here are the key developments this morning.
A senior civil servant claims Gavin Williamson told them to “slit your throat” in what they felt was a sustained campaign of bullying while he was defence secretary, my colleague Pippa Crerar has revealed.
Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, has described the language used by Williamson in these incidents as “just horrible”. In an interview with the Today programme, she also pointed out that, despite issuing a generalised denial, Williamson is not denying using the language quoted in Pippa’s report. Cooper said:
He doesn’t deny using the language. The language is horrible and you can’t imagine people being treated like that at work.
Gavin Williamson was reappointed to the cabinet even when Rishi Sunak knew there was a new complaint in against him. He has admitted that the language, even in the previous complaint, was unacceptable.
Morton has referred her complaint about Williamson to the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme, the parliamentary scheme set up to consider bullying allegations against MPs. Previously she complained to CCHQ. This development is serious for Williamson because ICGS investigations are particularly rigorous and impartial, whereas CCHQ investigations are less independent, and more opaque. The ICGS can also recommend the suspension of an MP as punishment. This new development was revealed by the Times’s Steven Swinford.
Nicky Morgan, the former education secretary, has said that based on her experience of Williamson when she was in government, she is not surprised by the allegations about him. Asked if Williamson should be sacked, Morgan also said it would be “very difficult” for Sunak not to demand his resignation. She said it would be better for Williamson to resign first. She made the comments on Talk TV last night.
Continue reading…A senior civil servant claims Gavin Williamson told them to ‘slit your throat’ in what they felt was a campaign of bullyingGood morning. Alastair Campbell, Tony Blair’s communications chief, is credited with devising a rule saying that, if a scandal continues to dominate the news for more than a certain number of days, the minister involved in it has to go. No one is quite sure what the exact number of days is (13, 11, a week? Campbell himself has forgotten), but the basic principle is sound, and that should be very worrying for Sir Gavin Williamson, the beleaguered Cabinet Office minister. On Friday last week Cat Neilan from Tortoise revealed that Wendy Morton, the former chief whip, had submitted a complaint to CCHQ about Williamson. The story has now reached day five and, far from going away, it’s snowballing. Here are the key developments this morning.A senior civil servant claims Gavin Williamson told them to “slit your throat” in what they felt was a sustained campaign of bullying while he was defence secretary, my colleague Pippa Crerar has revealed.Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, has described the language used by Williamson in these incidents as “just horrible”. In an interview with the Today programme, she also pointed out that, despite issuing a generalised denial, Williamson is not denying using the language quoted in Pippa’s report. Cooper said:He doesn’t deny using the language. The language is horrible and you can’t imagine people being treated like that at work.Gavin Williamson was reappointed to the cabinet even when Rishi Sunak knew there was a new complaint in against him. He has admitted that the language, even in the previous complaint, was unacceptable.Morton has referred her complaint about Williamson to the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme, the parliamentary scheme set up to consider bullying allegations against MPs. Previously she complained to CCHQ. This development is serious for Williamson because ICGS investigations are particularly rigorous and impartial, whereas CCHQ investigations are less independent, and more opaque. The ICGS can also recommend the suspension of an MP as punishment. This new development was revealed by the Times’s Steven Swinford.Nicky Morgan, the former education secretary, has said that based on her experience of Williamson when she was in government, she is not surprised by the allegations about him. Asked if Williamson should be sacked, Morgan also said it would be “very difficult” for Sunak not to demand his resignation. She said it would be better for Williamson to resign first. She made the comments on Talk TV last night. Continue reading…