Raab's conduct at MoJ was unintentionally 'intimidating and insulting'

Dominic Raab’s personal ‘abrasive’ style was unintentionally intimidating or insulting to individuals working at the Ministry of Justice, the report from Adam Tolley KC found.

The MoJ complaints concerned the period from September 2021 to September 2022, during Raab’s first spell as lord chancellor. A group complaint was communicated within the department in March 2022, drafted by a ‘committee’ of civil servants with multiple contributors. Once treated as a formal complaint, it led directly to the making of additional complaints from other departments where he had worked.

The report recorded that Raab had considered the MoJ required ‘significantly more in the way of oversight and accountability’ when he started at the department. This was regarded by civil servants as highly contentious and emphatically rejected by many.

Tolley found that on a number of occasions in meetings with policy officials, Raab ‘acted in a manner that was intimidating’, going further than necessary or appropriate to deliver feedback, and ‘insulting’ through unconstructive critical comments about the quality of work.

Raab would complain in meetings about the absence of ‘basic information’ and believed he met ‘cultural resistance’ within the MoJ.

Tolley found – although this was disputed by Raab – that it was likely he described one piece of work as ‘utterly useless’ and ‘woeful’.

Tolley added: ‘I find that [Raab] did not intend by the conduct described to upset or humiliate. He was typically so focused on what he regards as his desired outcome and how – as he saw it - to achieve that outcome effectively that he did not always have in mind the impact of his approach at the level of the individual who was affected by it.’

During the two and a half days of interviews, Raab told Tolley his ministerial style was ‘inquisitorial, direct, impatient and fastidious’. He tended to prepare extensively for meetings, would typically have read all of the key papers and identified questions in advance and did not wish to receive a recitation of papers which he has already read.

Raab often encountered what he saw as ‘frustrations’ in respect of the quality of work done, its speed of productions and the extent to which it implemented his policy decisions.

Tolley said one of the key questions was whether this style of conducting meetings, particularly when frustrated, went beyond what would normally be regarded as acceptable.

Raab was said by witnesses to be ‘inconsistent’ or ‘unpredictable’ in responding either with criticism or praise. He would gesture during meetings and was said to have extended his hand directly towards another person’s face to make them stop talking. He was also alleged to have loudly banged on the table to make a point.

Tolley said there was ‘significant scope for misunderstanding’ in Raab’s physical gestures, but he was not concerned that they were threatening and there was no question that the minister had ever lost control.

The report stated that MoJ permanent secretary Antonia Romeo told Raab in March 2022 there had been complaints about his behaviour, asking him to speak to her if he was frustrated. Tolley said Raab should have altered his approach earlier after concerns were raised by Romeo.

The individuals involved in the MoJ complaints said they experienced a range of impacts, including stress and anxiety, the taking of special unpaid leave, and in one case a period of stress-related sick leave. They believed that these impacts were attributable to the Raab’s conduct.

Tolley added that Raab was not aware, nor could he reasonably have been aware, of the impact on individuals in terms of what are said to have been the effects of his behaviour on their health.

This article is now closed for comment.