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Jacob Rees-Mogg warns against 'snowflakey' response to bullying claims against ministers

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the former business secretary, is pictured earlier this month - Paul Grover for The Telegraph
Jacob Rees-Mogg, the former business secretary, is pictured earlier this month - Paul Grover for The Telegraph

Jacob Rees-Mogg has warned against being “too snowflakey” about bullying allegations made against Government ministers amid an ongoing probe into Dominic Raab’s conduct.

The former business secretary said that “we have got to wait and see” what the outcome of the investigation into the Deputy Prime Minister will be.

He said there is a “very difficult line to judge” and ministers must be able to tell civil servants that their work is not up to scratch.

Mr Rees-Mogg told Sky News: "I think we’ve got to be slightly careful about the bullying allegations, we have got to wait and see... but also we mustn’t be too snowflakey about it. People need to be able to say this job has not been done well enough and needs to be done better.

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"It’s a very difficult line to judge. It’s not a straightforward issue in most cases. It’s how did somebody react, what did somebody say, is it reasonable to demand from senior and well-paid professionals a level of good service? And then you have to judge whether that line has been overstepped. But I do worry that we are getting a bit snowflakey about this."

The Liberal Democrats today called for Mr Raab to be suspended from his Government roles while the investigation is conducted. Mr Raab has previously said he is “confident I behaved professionally throughout”.

You can follow the latest updates below. 


10:11 AM

Union boss criticises Jacob Rees-Mogg's 'snowflakey' comments

Jacob Rees-Mogg’s comments about being “snowflakey” about bullying allegations made against ministers have been condemned by a civil service union chief.

Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA union which represents senior officials, tweeted: "Even by Rees-Mogg’s standards this is outrageous.

"A former leader of the House, trivialising bullying that we know has ruined lives and careers. Not only should he be ashamed of himself, but his leader and party should distance themselves from this."


10:06 AM

'Clearly we want significantly more'

The general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union said he wants the Government to commit to an above-inflation pay rise for his members. Firefighters have voted to strike but have not yet announced a date, with meetings with employers still to take place.

Matt Wrack told BBC Breakfast: “Clearly we want significantly more [than the five per cent offered]. My view is, ‘why should we take another pay cut?’.

“I am not going to negotiate on the TV. It is for the employers to come up with something credible and the members will decide.

“Let’s try and avoid a strike in the first place. Let’s get round the table, stop messing about, wake up to how serious the situation is, negotiate and make an improved offer.”


09:56 AM

Pictured: Dominic Raab arrives in Downing Street for Cabinet meeting

Dominic Raab, the Deputy Prime Minister, is pictured arriving in Downing Street this morning for Cabinet - Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP
Dominic Raab, the Deputy Prime Minister, is pictured arriving in Downing Street this morning for Cabinet - Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP

09:53 AM

IMF report a 'damning verdict' on Tory Government - Lib Dems

The Liberal Democrats said a gloomy new International Monetary Fund forecast on the state of the UK economy (see the post below at 08.02) is a "damning verdict on the Conservative Government".

Sarah Olney's, the party's Treasury spokeswoman, said: "High inflation, high-interest rates and high energy bills have left our country and hardworking families and pensioners suffering as a result.

"While Number 10 lurches from one sleaze scandal to another people up and down the country are suffering from their incompetence and mismanagement. People deserve better than this Conservative shambles."


09:13 AM

Pictured: Senior ministers arrive in Downing Street for Cabinet meeting

Mel Stride, the Work and Pensions Secretary, is pictured arriving at N010 this morning - Peter Nicholls/Reuters
Mel Stride, the Work and Pensions Secretary, is pictured arriving at N010 this morning - Peter Nicholls/Reuters
Suella Braverman, the Home Secretary, arrives in Downing Street this morning - Daniel Leal/AFP
Suella Braverman, the Home Secretary, arrives in Downing Street this morning - Daniel Leal/AFP

09:11 AM

Lib Dems call for Dominic Raab to be suspended

The Liberal Democrats have called for Dominic Raab to be suspended from his roles as Justice Security and Deputy Prime Minister for the duration of the investigation into the bullying claims made against him.

Lib Dem chief whip Wendy Chamberlain has written to Rishi Sunak urging the Prime Minister to suspend Mr Raab.

She said: "The reported scale of the allegations against Dominic Raab raises real questions for Rishi Sunak. Why hasn’t the Prime Minister suspended Raab yet, for the duration of this inquiry?"

However, Jacob Rees-Mogg, the Tory former Cabinet minister, rejected the calls, telling Sky News: "I think it is completely sensible that the Lord Chancellor remains fully in post whilst the investigation takes place and the Prime Minister then makes a judgement as to whether or not these allegations are serious or not."


09:03 AM

Jacob Rees-Mogg warns against being 'too snowflakey' over bullying claims made against ministers

It was suggested to Jacob Rees-Mogg during an interview on Sky News this morning that there is an "air of sleaze" around the Government, with the Dominic Raab bullying probe mentioned as an example.

The former business secretary warned against being "too snowflakey" about bullying allegations levelled at Government ministers.

He said: "I think we’ve got to be slightly careful about the bullying allegations, we have got to wait and see... but also we mustn’t be too snowflakey about it. People need to be able to say this job has not been done well enough and needs to be done better.

"It’s a very difficult line to judge. It’s not a straightforward issue in most cases. It’s how did somebody react, what did somebody say, is it reasonable to demand from senior and well-paid professionals a level of good service? And then you have to judge whether that line has been overstepped. But I do worry that we are getting a bit snowflakey about this."


08:52 AM

Jacob Rees-Mogg: Rishi Sunak 'doing perfectly competently' as PM

Jacob Rees-Mogg was asked this morning to give his assessment of Rishi Sunak's first 100 days as Prime Minister.

He told Sky News: "I think he is doing perfectly competently."


08:45 AM

Jacob Rees-Mogg: Northern Ireland Protocol must be 'fundamentally reformed, if not abandoned'

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the former business secretary, has urged the Government to speed up the passage of new Brexit laws through Parliament which would give ministers the power to unilaterally override parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol.

The senior Tory MP told Sky News: "It seems to me the Northern Ireland Protocol is failing and needs to be fundamentally reformed, if not abandoned."

Asked why problems with post-Brexit border rules in Northern Ireland are yet to be resolved, Mr Rees-Mogg said: "Well, the Government has just got to get on with it. There is a Bill that has been through the House of Commons that is awaiting its report stage in the House of Lords and I don't understand why the Government hasn't brought it forward in the House of Lords for its report stage."

The UK and EU remain locked in talks on how to resolve problems with the protocol but the mood music has improved in recent weeks with some speculation that a deal could be close.

The Government's preference is to strike a compromise with the EU rather than acting unilaterally, likely explaining why the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill has been parked in the Lords. Passing the Bill would inflame tensions with the EU and could therefore imperil any chances of a negotiated breakthrough.


08:35 AM

Matt Hancock did not 'primarily' go on I'm a Celebrity for the money

Matt Hancock has said he did not "primarily" go on I’m A Celebrity for the money as he insisted the three per cent of his £320,000 fee he donated to charity was substantial.

The former health secretary told ITV’s Good Morning Britain programme: "I did absolutely give some of the money to charity.

"I didn’t primarily do it [go on the reality TV show] for the money, I primarily did it to try to show who I am."


08:29 AM

Teaching union: 'We want our strike to be effective'

Members of the National Education Union will go on strike tomorrow and there are reports of teachers not sharing strike information with head teachers, hampering efforts to put in place contingency plans to minimise disruption for pupils.

Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the NEU, was asked this morning how appropriate it is for teachers not to share that information with school leaders.

He said: "Well, I think it is very appropriate. If this was the pandemic, if it was another natural phenomenon, we would be doing everything we could to make sure schools were running as much as possible.

"But the point about tomorrow is that it's a strike. It is a strike because we are in dispute with the Government. We are in dispute about the disruption that is happening everyday in schools. We want our strike to be effective in order to concentrate the Government's mind."


08:19 AM

Public service cuts or 'massive tax rises' the only way to fund inflation-busting pay rises - minister

Cuts to public services or "massive tax rises" would be the price of giving striking public sector workers a pay rise in line with inflation, a minister has claimed.

Richard Holden, the transport minister, told Times Radio: "Inflation-busting pay rises, the country just can’t afford because we’d either have to slash public services or give massive tax rises to working families up and down the country.

"And that would really hit the poorest hardest."


08:11 AM

Rachel Reeves responds to IMF forecast: UK 'lagging behind'


08:10 AM

Minister: Boris Johnson would not want to be Tory chairman

Rishi Sunak is yet to appoint a new chairman of the Conservative Party following the sacking of Nadhim Zahawi on Sunday. A number of names have been floated for the job - and one of them has been Boris Johnson.

However, Richard Holden, a transport minister, suggested this morning that Mr Johnson would not want the job.

He told Sky News: "I am convinced that the Prime Minister will make a sensible and clear decision on the future.

"I don’t think in fairness this is something that Boris would want to do. He seems to be quite happy doing what he is doing at the moment."


08:05 AM

UK can 'outperform' IMF economic forecast - minister

Richard Holden, a transport minister, said he believed the UK can "outperform" the IMF's latest economic forecasts as he argued that ultimately the "proof will be in the pudding".

Asked if the IMF has got it wrong, Mr Holden told Sky News: "They did in the last couple of years and I think Britain can outperform its predictions like it has done for the last two years."

Asked again if he believed the IMF is wrong, the minister said: "I think so and the IMF has also changed its mind on some of these aspects before and the figures have shown that the IMF were wrong.

"That’s why when we were predicted to be slower growing than other countries actually we have been quicker than say Germany and Japan and I think we can still outperform over the next few years as well."


08:02 AM

Minister: IMF has been 'wrong' before and UK can 'beat' gloomy forecast

The International Monetary Fund has forecast in a new report that the UK is on course to be the only major economy to shrink this year (you can read the full story here).

Richard Holden, a transport minister, dismissed the report and said the IMF has been "wrong" in the past. He said he believed the UK can "beat those predictions".

He told Times Radio: "That is a forecast, not what has actually happened. If you actually look what has happened over the last year we have actually outperformed Germany, we have outperformed Japan."

Asked if he believed the IMF is wrong, he said: "Well, they have been wrong in the last two years. The OECD were also wrong over the last two years. I think that Britain can beat those predictions. That is what we have done over the last couple of years.

"In fairness to the IMF they have said that the measures we have taken over the last couple of years have moved us broadly in the right direction.

"But I want to see the results of this, just like we have seen over the last years, they were also predicting we weren’t going to do that well earlier this year and the year before. I want to see the outcomes rather than predictions about the future."