Ex-Cabinet minister Gavin Williamson is ordered to apologise for bullying then-chief whip Wendy Morton after being snubbed for tickets to the late Queen’s funeral
Gavin Williamson has been ordered to say sorry for bullying the former chief whip after being snubbed for tickets to the late Queen’s funeral.
Parliament’s Independent Expert Panel condemned the ex-Cabinet minister’s ‘offensive and intimidating’ behaviour towards Wendy Morton last September.
He is being required to make an ‘unreserved’ apology to the House and undertake training.
The episode related to text messages in which Sir Gavin’s conduct was found to have amounted to an ‘abuse of power’.
The exchange between the politicians ended with Sir Gavin telling Ms Morton: ‘Well lets see how many more times you f*** us all over. There is a price for everything.’
Sir Gavin has agreed to the terms.
Ms Morton made a complaint to Westminster’s Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) in November last year.
Gavin Williamson has been ordered to say sorry for bullying the former chief whip after being snubbed for tickets to the late Queen’s funeral
Parliament’s Independent Expert Panel condemned the ex-Cabinet minister’s ‘offensive and intimidating’ behaviour towards Wendy Morton last September
The episode related to an exchange of text messages about tickets for the Queen’s funeral (pictured) in which Sir Gavin’s conduct was found to have amounted to an ‘abuse of power’
An independent investigator initially concluded that Sir Gavin had breached the bullying and harassment policy.
However, the Commons standards commissioner then overturned that conclusion, stating that while it was ‘offensive and intimidating behaviour’ it did not amount to bullying or an abuse of power.
However, the appeal panel went against the commissioner, saying the conclusion that the code had been breached ‘was in all the circumstances inevitable’.
It found his conduct had ‘gone beyond vigorous complaint or political disagreement to a threat to lever his power and authority as a former Chief Whip to undermine her personally as revenge for her (as he saw it) denying him a ticket to the funeral’.
The Commons said: ‘The IEP sub-panel considering the case agreed with the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards that the texts were ‘offensive and intimidating behaviour’.
‘It concluded that Sir Gavin’s conduct was an abuse of power, finding that it had gone beyond vigorous complaint or political disagreement to a threat to lever his power and authority as a former Chief Whip to undermine Ms Morton personally.
‘The sub-panel determined, having considered the wishes of the complainant, that the appropriate sanction was to require Sir Gavin to make an unreserved apology by way of a personal statement in the House, and to undertake appropriate behaviour training. Sir Gavin accepted this decision.’
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