11 embarrassing things Dominic Raab has actually said

The Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab has said he will resign from Rishi Sunak’s Cabinet, following the conclusion of an inquiry into bullying allegations.

Raab wrote in his resignation letter: “Dear Prime Minister, I am writing to resign from your government, following receipt of the report arising from the inquiry conducted by Adam Tolley KC.

“I called for the inquiry and undertook to resign, if it made any finding of bullying whatsoever. I believe it is important to keep my word.

“It has been a privilege to serve you as Deputy Prime Minister, Justice Secretary and Lord Chancellor. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to work as a minister in a range of roles and departments since 2015, and pay tribute to the many outstanding civil servants with whom I have worked.

“Whilst I feel duty bound to accept the outcome of the inquiry, it dismissed all but two of the claims levelled against me. I also believe that its two adverse findings are flawed and set a dangerous precedent for the conduct of good government.”

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But this isn't the first time Raab's mouth has run away with him.

His recent past is littered with outrageous quote after ridiculous statement.

Raab was elected to parliament in 2010 as the MP for Esher and Walton and has slowly risen to prominence in the Tory party after being a staunch advocate for Brexit and even ran for leader as part of the 2019 leadership contest.

Even before then, the 46-year-old showed an uncanny ability to deliver quotes that would have made many politicians blush with embarrassment.

So as he recovers from his latest "taking the knee" blunder, here are 10 more of his most ridiculous moments...

He didn't realise how reliant the UK is on the Dover-Calais crossing for trade... because we're an island

Perhaps the first most notorious moment in Raab's career was when he was talking at a tech event in London in November 2018 and openly admitted that he didn't have a full grasp on the geography of the UK and how reliant the country was on its connection to Calais, France at the Dover crossing.

He didn't read the Good Friday Agreement as Brexit secretary...

As the Brexit deadline edged closer and the debate about the Irish border ramped up, Raab who at this point was the Brexit secretary defiantly admitted that he had not read the 32-page Good Friday Agreement. During a committee meeting, he was asked by Lady Sylvia Hermon if he had read arguably the most important political document in post-war British history, he said:

I haven't sat down and gone from... I've used it as a reference tool to make sure that I understood and could satisfy and reassure myself that, in relation to a the commitments that are made on both sides in relation to the joint report in December which was the basis on what we were going to do with the backstop, that we are not impinging on anything required by the Belfast Agreement and also to make sure more broadly in the positive sense that what we are doing can promote peace, stability, and not withstanding what I recognise is a difficult set of questions for the people of Northern Ireland.

He said the typical food bank user has "cash flow problems"

Jumping to May 2017, Raab came under fire after he suggested live on BBC One that the 'typical food bank user had cash flow problems episodically' and was not 'languishing in poverty.'

He failed to realise how much money he would save by increasing contributions to National Insurance

Sticking with food banks, during a hustings event during the 2019 general election the Tories proposed policy that would save low-paid workers money by increasing their contributions to National Insurance. However, when the actual maths were relayed to him by a member of the public all he could say was "I've been doing this for two hours."

That time he said coronavirus means we need to "get Brexit done" quicker

The coronavirus pandemic has put a lot of issues in focus but many of us have not been banging on about Brexit like we were 12 months ago. There are more important things to be dealing with right now and something like that can wait. However, Raab sees things slightly differently and believes the crisis means that the UK should complete the negotiation process even quicker. Last month he said that the virus made "the case for intensive diplomacy to get this deal done and move on and take the relationship to the next level."

He denied calling for NHS privatisation, despite what's written in his own book

Back to the 2019 general election and the debate around the NHS and if the Tories were planning to privatise it or not. During a BBC radio interview Raab said that he did not support privatising the health service to which presenter Nick Robinson then confronted him with one of Raab's own quotes from a book he co-wrote in 2011.

That time he didn't know the difference between the Irish Sea and the Red Sea

If you thought Raab's knowledge of geography was already a bit iffy wait until you hear this. While talking about the customs borders he boldly stated that a proverbial line wouldn't be drawn down the Red Sea. What he acutally meant to say was the Irish sea and not the body of water between the north east of Africa and the Arabian penisula.

Said he's been fighting for "fairness" his entire life when... well, you can make your own mind up on this one.

Raab's leadership campaign video was probably the most unintentionally hilarious as Raab claimed he has fought for 'fairness' his entire life despite not being the traditional image of fairness that we all think of from a politician.

Said "probably not" when he was asked if he was a feminist

During the leadership election, Raab was questioned about a comment he made in 2011 where he called feminists 'obnoxious bigots.' In response he said:

The point I was making is that sexism is wrong and it’s wrong if it’s said about a woman or about a man and I think equality is too precious a value for us to put up with double standards. I do think we should call hypocrisy out in political debate and political life.

He was then asked if he was a feminist now, to which he replied:

No, probably not.

This might actually be the most accurate thing he's ever said, to be fair...

Blocks James O'Brien after being fact-checked

LBC Radio presenter was one of the most prominent voices in the anti-Brexit debate for years in the media. As part of a now-infamous segment on his show he live fact-checked many of Raab's previous comments and claims.

Raab didn't take kindly to this and branded O'Brien as being part of the 'loony left' and promptly blocked him on Twitter.

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