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Priti Patel has praised “brilliant public officials” in her first televised comments since she was forced to apologize for the bullying allegations.
The interior secretary said she “regretted that my behavior bothered people,” adding that “she had never intended to intentionally annoy anyone.”
She continued: “I work with thousands of brilliant officials every day and we work together, day after day, to fulfill the agenda of this government.
“And I’m very sorry for anyone who has bothered.”
Priti Patel with Prime Minister Boris Johnson
His comments follow a ruling by the government’s independent adviser on standards, Sir Alex Allan, who determined that he was “violating the ministerial code, even if it was not intentional.”
But Boris Johnson disagreed and decided that his Home Secretary had not violated the code on allegations of intimidation, prompting Sir Alex to resign.
A government source said Sir Alex resigned because the prime minister ignored his advice.
A violation of the ministerial code generally leads a prime minister, the ultimate arbiter of the code, to ask the minister in question to resign.
Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer said Johnson had been “found wanting when his leadership was put to the test,” adding that if he were prime minister, Patel would have been fired.
“It’s a rule for Boris Johnson and his friends, another for everyone else,” Sir Keir said.
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Priti Patel is ‘courteous and friendly’
But the prime minister said he had full confidence in his interior secretary and “considers that this matter is now closed.”
It was also revealed that he had urged conservative MPs, in a WhatsApp message, to “form a square around the Prittster.”
Sir Alex said that Ms. Patel “did not consistently meet the high standards required by the ministerial code to treat her public officials with consideration and respect.”
He also found evidence of “screams and oaths” from Ms. Patel during her time as a minister in different government departments.
At times, his approach “amounted to behaviors that can be described as bullying in terms of the impact people feel,” he added.
“Up to that point, their behavior has violated the ministerial code, even if not intentional,” he said.
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‘I don’t believe Priti Patel’
Johnson’s official spokesman said the prime minister had been “reassured that the home secretary regrets that she inadvertently disturbed those with whom she was working.”
“He also assures him that relations in the Interior Ministry have improved a lot, and that is the basis on which he made the decision,” the spokesman added.
Additionally, Downing Street pointed to “mitigating factors” surrounding Ms. Patel’s behavior, as described in Sir Alex’s findings.
The senior official noted how – “justifiably in many cases” – Ms. Patel had been “frustrated” by the “lack of responsiveness” of public officials and her feelings of “lack of support.”
Sir Alex said that “there was no evidence that she was aware of the impact of her behavior, and no feedback was given at that time.”
He added that there had been “a different and more positive behavior” from Ms Patel since the problems were first brought up to her.
The investigation into Ms Patel’s behavior followed the resignation of the highest ranking official of the Ministry of the Interior, Sir Philip Rutnam, in February, amid widespread reports of a bitter dispute between him and Ms. Patel.
