Raab announced his resignation in a letter to the prime minister before the report was made public, his departure a setback for Sunak just two weeks before local council elections in England where his Tories are expected to do badly.
Sunak’s office declined to immediately comment on what happened: “I have requested an investigation and have pledged to resign if any abuse is found,” Raab’s letter said. “I think it’s important to keep my word,” he added.
As deputy prime minister, Raab stepped in for the prime minister on outings away from parliament or when the chief minister could not attend certain events. He was a close political ally of Sunak and helped launch his campaign to be prime minister last summer.
The months-long investigation into Raab’s behavior featured evidence from several government officials about complaints of bullying at three different departments.
Raab, who was also justice minister, called for an inquiry in November following formal complaints about his behavior from government officials. He said he felt “compelled” to accept the outcome of the inquiry but strongly defended his conduct.
He said the report concluded he had not cursed, shouted or physically intimidated anyone in four-and-a-half years and dismissed all but two of the claims against him.
Raab said setting such a low threshold for aggression “set a dangerous precedent for the conduct of good governance”.
This “will have a profound effect on those who drive change on behalf of your government – and ultimately on the British people,” he said in his letter.
Raab referred to the two incidents where there was a finding of bullying against him — one at the Foreign Office in the handling of Brexit negotiations over Gibraltar by a diplomat and one where he provided critical feedback during a previous spell at the ministry Justice from 2021 to 2022.
Another of Sunak’s deputy ministers, Gavin Williamson, was forced to resign in November after allegations of bullying, and the prime minister sacked Conservative Party chairman Nadhim Zahawi in January after he was found to have breached the code ministerial because of his openness about his tax affairs.
