Sue Gray has been found to have broken civil service rules "as a result of the undeclared contact" between her and the Labour Party, according to a Whitehall investigation.
The former senior civil servant was set to take up the role as Sir Keir Starmer's chief of staff after being cleared to start the job in September by the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba), the anti-corruption watchdog. However, a separate Cabinet Office inquiry found that Ms Gray, who refused to provide evidence to the government probe, broke the civil service code due to her contact with Labour ahead of her resignation in March.
The result of the inquiry came in the form of a written ministerial statement. Cabinet Office minister Jeremy Quin said: “I can now confirm that the Cabinet Office process looking into the circumstances leading up to Ms Gray’s resignation has been concluded.
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As part of the process, Ms Gray was given the opportunity to make representations but chose not to do so. This process, led by the Civil Service, found that the Civil Service code was prima facie broken as a result of the undeclared contact between Ms Gray and the Leader of the Opposition.
“The rules and guidance that govern the conduct of civil servants are clear and transparent. It is deeply unfortunate that events have transpired in this way.”
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Aciba recommended that Ms Gray take a six-month break before taking up her new role with the opposition which would allow her to start in two months' time. The watchdog highlighted that it had seen "no evidence" that her decision-making or impartiality was "impaired" while serving in Whitehall.
