Scarborough-born MP Sir Gavin Williamson resigns over bullying allegations

The former Education Secretary was recently appointed a minister without portfolio in the new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Cabinet Office.

He has now resigned from the cabinet following a series of allegations directed towards him regarding bullying and abusive text messages.The first exchange of messages were obtained by The Sunday Times and were shared to the public over the weekend.They were sent on September 13 to Liz Truss’ Chief Whip Wendy Morton, and accused her of using the death of the monarch to “punish” senior MPs who were out of favour with Liz Truss’s government.

The Sunday Times reported that the then party chairman, Sir Jake Berry, informed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak the day before he entered No 10 that Ms Morton had submitted a formal complaint to the party about Sir Gavin’s conduct.

On the evening of Tuesday November 8, shortly before the former minister handed in his resignation, an ex-civil servant accused the Tory MP of telling them to ‘slit your throat’, the Guardian reported.

In the MP’s resignation letter to the Prime Minister, he says “As you know, there is an ongoing complaints process concerning text messages I sent to a colleague.

“I am complying with this process and have apologised to the recipient for those messages.

“Since then, there have been other allegations made about my past conduct. I refute the characterisation of these claims, but I recognise these are becoming a distraction for the good work this government is doing for the British people.

“I have therefore decided to step back from government so that I can comply fully with the complaints process that is underway and clear my name of any wrongdoing.

“It is with real sadness that I tender my resignation, but I want to take this opportunity to offer my full and total support from the back benches. I am incredibly proud to have worked with you in government over the last few years and during the campaign.”

Following on from this, it has been confirmed that the former minister will not be taking any severance, stating that: “This is taxpayers’ money and it should go instead toward the Government‘s priorities like reducing the NHS’s waiting lists.”

Sir Gavin was Education Secretary between July 2019 and September 2021 and is known for being in charge around the controversy of the GCSE and A-Level exams fiasco in 2020, at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He was sacked after widespread criticism of his role in the matter. In 2019, he was sacked as Defence Secretary following an inquiry into a leak from the National Security Council.

Both Sir Jake and Ms Morton lost their jobs in the ensuing reshuffle while Sir Gavin – a former chief whip and a supporter of Mr Sunak – returned to government.

Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour party leader, has branded Sir Gavin “a pathetic bully”, according to ITV’s political editor.

Sir Gavin told The Sunday Times: “I of course regret getting frustrated about the way colleagues and I felt we were being treated.

“I am happy to speak with Wendy and I hope to work positively with her in the future as I have in the past.”