WEDNESDAY 4 MARCH 2020She’s Priti insecure...
The home secretary has survived initial accusations of yelling at
officials but she’s not safe yet, writes John Rentoul
Materials that emerge in a tribunal could seriously damage Priti Patel (PA)
Diane Abbott, the shadow home secretary, has called for Priti Patel to leave the cabinet while allegations of
bullying are investigated. That is what the opposition might be expected to call for, but how likely is it that
the home secretary will lose her job?
It would seem to be the intention of her former top civil servant, Sir Philip Rutnam, to make sure he takes
her out with him. In his resignation statement last week he said he had rejected the financial settlement
offered by the government – the implication being that he refused to go quietly and intended to take the
matter to court.
Labour has latched on to the inquiry announced by Michael Gove, the cabinet office minister, on Monday