London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Sep 16, 2025

Raab and Sunak both face moment of jeopardy

Raab and Sunak both face moment of jeopardy

Westminster waits.

A sense of limbo. The prime minister deciding not to decide, yet, about the future of his deputy, Dominic Raab.

The judgement call is binary: keep him, or sack him.

Here is what we know:

The prime minister has seen the report from Adam Tolley KC. The deputy prime minister has too.

Rishi Sunak and Dominic Raab did not speak on Thursday.

Mr Raab has said for some time that he would resign if it was concluded he was a bully. But Mr Raab has not resigned.

It seems reasonable, therefore, to conclude the deputy prime minister does not think the evidence in the report amounts to bullying.

So the decision over his future is down to the prime minister.


Consequences of waiting


So why the delay?

The government had created an expectation Mr Sunak's verdict would be quick.

Those participants in this process had been told to expect its outcome on Thursday, but it didn't come.

Equally, we should add a bit of context: when Boris Johnson was prime minister, he waited several months to publish and offer his verdict on an inquiry into his Home Secretary, Priti Patel.

That inquiry, by his standards adviser Sir Alex Allan, concluded Ms Patel had broken the Ministerial Code, but Mr Johnson ignored it.

Ms Patel carried on. Sir Alex resigned.

Talking to us on BBC Newscast, Sir Alex said of Rishi Sunak's quandary now: "You can understand, if it's a huge report, the prime minister may want time to consider it. But as far as I can see it probably cannot be completely clear cut. Otherwise he would have come out with a decision one way or the other."

But the waiting is having consequences.

Mr Raab knows the names of those in his department, the Ministry of Justice, who were complainants.

Those complainants fear he might keep his job.

"The prime minister's prevarication makes it feel more likely that the whole thing, the last five months of agony for Raab's subordinates, will end in a whitewash," somebody who advised Mr Raab in a senior role in one department told the BBC.

Are resignations possible from the civil service if Mr Raab keeps his job?

"I think so," Dave Penman of the civil servants' union the FDA said.


Potential mutiny


But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Very few people have seen Adam Tolley's report, and next to nothing has leaked from it.

We should reserve judgement until we see it.

Mr Sunak faces turbulence whatever he decides to do.

Sack the man who loyally campaigned for him to become prime minister and create a big vacancy at the top of government and a big question about whether he should have appointed him in the first place.

Keep him and face potential mutiny inside the Ministry of Justice and the prospect of alleged victims of Mr Raab's behaviour resigning, demanding a move and maybe talking publicly.

"Either outcome gives him a management problem," one senior Conservative MP reflected to me.

A friend of Mr Raab told me the deputy prime minister has long been "moderately optimistic" the report might be less than clear cut.

Let's see.

Mr Raab is facing a moment of jeopardy over his job.

Rishi Sunak is facing a moment of jeopardy over his judgement.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
×