Former Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab will stand down as MP at next general election

The 49-year-old had recently quit the Cabinet in the wake of a bullying inquiry he believed was unfair
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Dominic Raab has confirmed he will stand down as an MP at the next general election - just over a month after he resigned from government following a bullying investigation.

The independent inquiry found the former Deputy Prime Minister was persistently aggressive in work meetings and acted in an intimidating manner. Raab said it had set a “low” threshold for bullying, calling the findings a “dangerous precedent for the conduct of good government”.

Why is Raab standing down?

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The Daily Telegraph has seen a letter sent by Raab - who represents Esher and Walton in Surrey - to the chairman of his local Conservative association.

Confirming his decision to leave Parliament, the father-of-two says “I have become increasingly concerned over the last few years about the pressure the job has placed on my young family.”

“I will continue to carry out all my responsibilities to my constituents, and provide every support in campaigning, so that we win here next year - which I am confident we can do under this Prime Minister’s leadership.”

Downing Street said Rishi Sunak “thanks him for being a dedicated and loyal public servant, for his services to this government and to his constituents, and wishes him the best for the future”.

Dominic Raab. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)Dominic Raab. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
Dominic Raab. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

What did the bullying inquiry find?

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The five-month investigation - carried out by the barrister Adam Tolley KC - looked at eight complaints about Raab’s conduct in different government roles over a number of years. It concluded he’d engaged in an “abuse or misuse of power” that “undermines or humiliates”. The inquiry also found he intimidated staff by criticising work he thought was “utterly useless” and “woeful”.

Tolley stopped short of describing the conduct as bullying, but upheld two of the complaints. Raab - who’d pledged to leave the Cabinet if any claim was upheld - resigned, but said the inquiry would have a “chilling effect on those driving change” in government. He said he’d also been warned that “unionised officials” were targeting him, hinting that civil servants wanted to remove him because they disagreed with his policies.

Would he have won the next election?

Esher and Walton is a key target for the Liberal Democrats at the next election. In 2019, Raab held onto the seat by just 2,743 votes from Monica Harding, a local management consultant. She is standing again for the Lib Dems and recent opinion polls suggested she was on course to beat Raab. Her party has also recently opened its first office in Esher and Walton to “ramp up” campaigning - and the Lib Dems have urged Raab to stand down immediately so a by-election can be called. It’s unlikely he will do so.

Which other Conservatives are leaving Parliament?

Around 30 Tory MPs have so far announced they won’t stand for re-election. They include the former Chancellor Sajid Javid, the ex-Environment Secretary George Eustice and the former Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries.

An eventful 13 years

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A lawyer by trade, who once worked in the civil service himself, Dominic Raab entered Parliament in 2010. Having spent his first term on the backbenches, the karate black belt was re-elected with an increased majority in 2015, and was given a junior role in the Ministry of Justice under Michael Gove. He was made courts minister in 2017 when Theresa May took office and a year later, she appointed him as her Brexit Secretary following the resignation of David Davis.

Dominic Raab quit government after an official inquiry into bullying claims upheld two allegations Dominic Raab quit government after an official inquiry into bullying claims upheld two allegations
Dominic Raab quit government after an official inquiry into bullying claims upheld two allegations

Raab lasted just four months in the role - and was mocked at one point for saying he “hadn’t quite understood” how important the Dover-Calais crossing was for UK trade. He resigned in November 2018, saying he couldn’t support May’s draft Brexit deal.

When May stepped down after months of Brexit turmoil in 2019, Raab unsuccessfully stood for the Tory leadership. Following his exit from the contest, he backed the eventual winner Boris Johnson - who brought him back into government as Foreign Secretary and First Secretary of State (a role similar to Deputy Prime Minister).

He deputised for Johnson when the then Prime Minister fell ill with coronavirus in 2020 but suffered a major hit to his reputation the following summer when the Afghan capital Kabul fell to the Taliban. Raab was on holiday abroad at the time - prompting claims he was “missing in action”. He admitted the government had been surprised by the “scale and pace” of the Taliban’s takeover and famously denied paddleboarding in Greece as Kabul fell, telling Sky News “the sea was closed”.

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Weeks later, he was demoted to Justice Secretary - a role he held until September 2022 when Liz Truss became Prime Minister. Raab had endorsed Rishi Sunak in the leadership contest - who gave him his job back when Truss was ousted from Downing Street a few weeks later.

The 49-year-old remained at the Ministry of Justice until his resignation in the wake of the Tolley bullying report last month.

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