SUE Gray has “not enjoyed” being in the public eye and this has led to her decision to take a break from Government, a senior minister has said.
Gray, former No 10 chief of staff and now “envoy” to the nations and regions of the UK, has “been through quite a lot”, Pat McFadden told Sky News.
It comes after it was announced Gray (below) would not be attending the inaugural meeting of the Council of Nations and Regions in Edinburgh on Friday.
When asked by Sky News why she would not be present, McFadden – the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster – said: “Sue has been through quite a lot in the last few weeks.
“I worked with her, she is a great colleague. She is taking a short break now and I think we should allow her the time in privacy to do that.”
The senior Cabinet Office minister told LBC: “I know that she has not enjoyed being a figure in the public eye unlike me, who can come on your programme and speak for myself and answer any of your questions.
“As an official, she can’t do that. Given what she has been through in the last few weeks, she has decided to take a bit of downtime, take a bit of a break, and I quite understand why.”
Asked how long her break would be, McFadden (above) said: “I don’t think it will be long, but let’s give her a bit of space and privacy after somebody who, as I said, can’t speak up for themselves, finding themselves on the front pages of the newspapers in a way that she has not wanted to be.”
McFadden would not disclose if Gray would continue being paid while she was taking time away from work.
We previously told how Gray stepped down from her role as chief of staff at Downing Street after it was revealed she was paid more than Keir Starmer.
The first meeting of the Council of Nations and Regions takes place on Friday, with John Swinney set to be the only representative from Scotland.
