Now another Tory minister is facing bullying claims

Just days after Dominic Raab resigned over intimidating and aggressive conduct towards officials, another Tory minister is facing bullying allegations.

Rishi Sunak accepted the resignation of the then justice minister Raab last week, who was also deputy prime minister, after a report by a senior lawyer found he had insulted colleagues and committed an “abuse or misuse of power” during his tenure.

Now, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Steve Barclay is reportedly facing accusations of bullying, with officials from his department allegedly having “raised concerns” about his conduct towards staff.

According to The Guardian, civil servants informally complained about how they were treated by Barclay. Senior officials also reportedly privately spoke of “bullying” and other “bad behaviour” by him.

Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter

Barclay was appointed Secretary of State for Health and Social Care in OctoberLeon Neal/Getty Images

The publication also quoted unnamed sources as saying he was “challenging”, “constantly angry” and “hauls people over the coals and is generally a bit unpleasant”.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “The department has not received any formal complaints relating to the behaviour of its ministers.

“Any complaints, relating to ministers or members of staff, would be investigated in line with departmental guidance.”

Allies of Barclay have also ‘totally denied’ the allegations. Foreign secretary James Cleverly told Sky News: “I’ve worked with him on a number of occasions. He has made a statement making it absolutely clear that there have been no reports.

“His statement is clear and completely unambiguous, and I am completely convinced that that is accurate.”

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.