What has happened to the Priti Patel bullying inquiry?

The verdict, if it is made, will be ‘determined in secret, alone, by a prime minister who has already pledged his allegiance to the minister’, reports Rob Merrick

The inquiry into whether Patel breached the ministerial code started seven long months ago (Getty)

Coronavirus was just a strange word we barely understood when the inquiry into a “tsunami” of bullying allegations against Priti Patel began, it was that long ago.

Since then, a lockdown has been imposed, has been lifted, has been sort-of reimposed in many areas, a decent summer came and went, the football season restarted and concluded – but still it drags on, for seven long months so far.

At this rate, Sir John Chilcot, who took more than seven years to investigate the Iraq War, will be given a run for his money. So what is going on?

To answer that question, it is important to understand that this is not an “inquiry” in the way the word is normally understood, as something independent and impartial.

In fact, it is a near-farcical process in which Boris Johnson – who long ago all but cleared the home secretary by joking he would “stick with Prit” – acts as judge, jury and executioner.

Its verdict will be “determined in secret, alone, by a prime minister who has already pledged his allegiance to the minister in advance”, as Dave Penman, the head of the civil servants’ union put it.

That is because Ms Patel, who denies all the allegations, is being investigated under the “ministerial code”, which sets down rules for behaviour – but over which Mr Johnson is the “arbiter”.

This was underlined when the new cabinet secretary said there was no need for the prime minister to ever publish the report... but that’s not even the worst aspect of all this.

In July, it was reported that Helen MacNamara, the senior civil servant leading the inquiry, was refusing to bow to Downing Street’s demand to clear Ms Patel of all charges.

She was said to have heard evidence to substantiate the bullying claims made by Sir Philip Rutnam, the Home Office permanent secretary, who sensationally quit in February.

Soon afterwards, Ms MacNamara was promoted from the post of head of propriety and ethics, making it unclear who is overseeing the inquiry – and raising doubts about whether it will ever be wrapped up without the verdict No 10 wants.

Every week, journalists are told the inquiry is “ongoing”, but it is widely believed it was finished months ago and Mr Johnson is simply refusing to publish it.

It’s worth remembering how serious the allegations are. While Ms Patel was the work minister, an official in her private office allegedly tried to kill herself after being bullied and received a £25,000 government payout.

But it’s also crucial to recognise how important the Home Secretary is to Mr Johnson – as a hard Brexiteer, fanatical in cutting immigration – as he seeks to hang on to his small-c conservative voters. That appears to be the key factor here.