JACOB Rees-Mogg has said he worries that “we’re being a bit snowflaky” over bullying allegations made against Dominic Raab.
Eight formal allegations have been levelled against the Deputy Prime Minister and are being investigated by senior lawyer Adam Tolley KC.
He has previously said he is “always mindful” of his behaviour but makes “no apologies for having high standards”.
Raab has denied the eight formal complaints which have been lodged against him.
Asked about the allegations on Sky News, Rees-Mogg said: “Well, a Labour MP had to stand down from his seat and there was a by-election because he had behaved in an unsuitable manner within his office if I remember the details correctly and that was only last year.
“If you take a parliament of 650 people, there will inevitably be some people who don’t behave as well as they should and that is always an issue for all prime ministers.”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has thus far resisted calls to suspend Raab while an investigation is carried out.
One ex-Cabinet minister told The Telegraph: “It just seems to be to be a repeat of the Nadhim Zahawi situation, where it is inevitable that he will be asked to leave the government.
#KayBurley: More than a dozen civil servants have alleged Dominic Raab is a bully Jacob Rees-Mogg - "We've got to be slightly careful about the bullying allegations... as we mustn't be to snowflaky about it.. I do worry that we're being a bit snowflaky about this"#BBCBreakfast pic.twitter.com/Cl24CvPHVA
— Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺 (@Haggis_UK) January 31, 2023
“So why prolong the pain? I think it would be right for Dominic to stand down.”
Sunak has already been forced to sack Nadhim Zahawi after he was found to have breached the ministerial code.
Rees-Mogg continued: “I think we’ve got to be slightly careful about the bullying allegations. We mustn’t be too snowflaky 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 is not a straightforward issue in most cases, it is 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 snowflaky about this.”
