Dominic Raab must speak for himself and apologise – or resign

Editorial: In an article for The Independent, Gina Miller made the first on-the-record claim that she had been ‘bullied and demeaned’ by the deputy prime minister

(Dave Brown)

Until now, the victims of Dominic Raab’s alleged bullying – most of whom are said to be women – have remained anonymous. Bearing in mind the nature of the claims, that is understandable. But the veil of secrecy has now been lifted.

The claim made by Gina Miller, the anti-Brexit campaigner – in an article written for The Independent – that Mr Raab launched an “abusive” attack on her sounds strikingly similar to the anonymous accounts of others. She says he said: “I can’t make up my mind if you’re naive, got too much money or just stupid.”

That Ms Miller says Mr Raab “barked” at a BBC employee to “Go get me a f***ing car” after appearing on the Today programme also echoes anonymous complaints of his aggressive and intimidating behaviour. She describes further how her brother, Gary Marlowe, was forced to challenge Mr Raab after he appeared to confuse Mr Marlowe with the comedian Nish Kumar – a claim Mr Kumar has confirmed to this newspaper, saying that he had “no confidence” Mr Raab could “differentiate between different Asians”.

Ms Miller (and, indeed, Mr Kumar) should be praised for speaking out publicly. A spokesperson for Mr Raab told The Independent: “Dominic firmly rejects the description and characterisation of him portrayed by Gina Miller. He always treats people with the utmost respect and has never sworn at staff.”

Let us hear directly from Mr Raab himself. So far the prime minister’s spokespeople have engaged in a rather theological debate about whether Rishi Sunak was aware of any “formal” complaints against Mr Raab when he reappointed him justice secretary and deputy prime minister in October.

Everyone knows that the prime minister was desperate to shore up his new government after the sudden collapse of his predecessor’s short-lived administration. That meant recalling Suella Braverman as home secretary, despite her resignation over sharing confidential documents a few days previously.

It meant giving Gavin Williamson a seat at the cabinet table, which he voluntarily abandoned after his uncouth texts to the former chief whip were published. And it meant giving a top job to Mr Raab, one of Mr Sunak’s leading supporters against Liz Truss. However, we have moved beyond the question of what Mr Sunak knew at the time of Mr Raab’s appointment.

Until now, The Independent has refrained from calling on Mr Sunak to dismiss his deputy prime minister. We do not know if any of the further numerous allegations against Mr Raab are true. We do not know, for example, if he threw tomatoes into a paper bag in anger, or if he shouted “Bulls***” at an official, as has been reported. If such claims are true, it is hard to judge the context, in which junior staff are alleged to have felt frightened. We will leave them to be investigated by Adam Tolley KC, who is looking into complaints from 24 civil servants about bullying.

But we do believe Ms Miller is telling the truth. Moreover, Mr Raab’s behaviour was witnessed by Ms Miller’s brother. Naturally there is an ideological dispute between Ms Miller and Mr Raab, but it is stretching credulity to suggest that she and her brother have both concocted such allegations.

Even if all the other claims against Mr Raab are unfounded, there can be no excuse for his having behaved in the way Ms Miller says he did towards her. It would not be tolerated in any modern workplace – or anywhere else. Mr Raab should either offer a full apology to her, and to anyone else he has treated in this way, or he should resign.