Dominic Raab has been challenged to uphold the rules he pushed all MPs to follow by pledging to quit and call a byelection if enough voters in his marginal Surrey seat demand one, after a report into bullying claims.
The former deputy prime minister, who resigned after being found to have exhibited intimidating and abrasive behaviour towards staff, was urged to stand behind plans he pioneered in 2013 to enable MPs found to have behaved badly to face a referendum by constituents.
As a backbencher, Raab championed moves to make MPs more accountable to their electorates and supported what he called a “robust right to recall”. He argued the measure would help “strengthen public confidence, and focus MPs’ minds on their local accountability”, as well as hold to account anyone who “behaves improperly or neglects his duties”.
Raab backed a bill tabled by Zac Goldsmith, then a Conservative MP, which would have resulted in a formal vote being triggered in constituencies where 20% of the electorate signed a petition calling for one within a given timeframe.
He voted for such a move on 4 December 2013, and later wrote a piece for the Conservative Home website saying of the idea that “now would be a good time for the government to take it up”.
The idea was never adopted by the government, but there were some changes to the system that enable MPs to face a byelection before the next general election – for instance if they are suspended from parliament for 10 sitting days or more.
A petition has been launched by the Liberal Democrats in Raab’s Esher and Walton constituency, where the party is the second-place challenger. With a majority of less than 3,000, Raab’s is one of the most vulnerable seats in the so-called “blue wall” of traditionally safe Tory seats.
Daisy Cooper, the Lib Dems’ deputy leader, challenged Raab to “put his money where his mouth is, and guarantee that he will resign and trigger a byelection if 20% of his constituents ask him to”.
She said voters should “have their voices heard”, while the local Lib Dem parliamentary candidate Monica Harding said people locally were “furious with Dominic Raab’s tone-deaf response to the bullying report” and it had come up “time and again on the doorsteps”.
Raab continued to defend himself in bullish style, giving a series of further interviews over the weekend.
He admitted he has a “straight talk and direct dealing” approach, but told the Sun on Sunday that complainants had concocted a “coordinated and concerted” effort that amounted to a “politicised attack”.
Meanwhile, in the Mail on Sunday, Raab argued he had left government with his “head held high” and “integrity intact”.
Raab’s replacement as deputy prime minister lavished him with praise. Oliver Dowden told the BBC that while it was right Raab had stuck to his vow to quit if the inquiry found against him, he was a “very effective” justice secretary who had offered a “huge amount” of public service to the country.
Dowden said ministers would continue demanding high standards from civil servants, adding that those in the cabinet often worked in “highly pressured situations” and that he had experienced “frustrations” dealing with officials, too.
As part of an ongoing bid to smooth over relations with potentially restless MPs, Sunak invited about a dozen to his countryside retreat of Chequers on Sunday. The majority were people who supported Liz Truss in last summer’s leadership contest, or are still thought to harbour sympathies with Boris Johnson.
“He’s love bombing us,” said one of those present, who was impressed at the outreach. “He’s realised there’s no point in courting people just when times are bad and you’re in the bunker.”
The issue of Raab’s resignation was not mentioned by the prime minister, the MP said, suggesting Downing Street was keen to quickly move on from the saga.
Caroline Slocock, a former civil servant who is now director of the Civil Exchange thinktank, said the situation had highlighted the need for a “more independent process” for determining breaches of the ministerial code.
She called for, as a minimum, the prime minister’s ethics adviser to be allowed to initiate and run their own investigations into allegations against members of the cabinet.
Slocock said: “It is difficult for civil servants to raise complaints against their political masters, and potentially career threatening, and independence from the political process (and political considerations) would give them more confidence to do so.”
