UK ministers hold fire on ex-official Sue Gray’s controversial Labour job

LONDON — The British government is mulling “next steps” in its inquiry into Sue Gray, the former senior civil servant who raised eyebrows by leaving Whitehall to take up a top job with the Labour opposition.

Cabinet Office Minister Oliver Dowden told MPs Tuesday he was “unable at this stage to provide further information relating to the departure of Ms Gray whilst we consider next steps.” The inquiry into her controversial exit had been paused following “intense negotiations” between ministers and Simon Case, who heads up the civil service, the Guardian reported Tuesday night.

Gray’s flight to the opposition angered Conservatives, who pointed to her role as the independent mandarin tasked with investigating rule-breaking parties in Downing Street under Boris Johnson. Gray’s highly critical report found that Johnson presided over “failures of leadership” in No. 10.

Tuesday’s relatively sparse update from Dowden came despite some media reports that Gray — a much-respected and much-feared civil service veteran who is in line to become Keir Starmer’s chief of staff — would be criticized for the job change in the latest update.

Instead, Dowden said Gray had declined the chance to spell out whether she had any contact with the Labour leader while in office.

He said the probe into the circumstances surrounding Gray’s exit “involved interviewing relevant persons to establish further details on the contact between Ms Gray and the Leader of the Opposition.”

And he added: “I can update the House that Ms Gray was given the opportunity to make representations as part of this process but chose not to do so.”

But Dowden’s update did not expand on the substance of Gray’s exit, citing the need to maintain “confidentiality towards an individual former employee.”

It included a reminder that all civil servants “are required to follow” the organization’s four principles of integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality.

“Section 4.4.9 of the Civil Service Management Code sets out that all members of the Senior Civil Service are in the ‘politically restricted’ category, which places further restrictions on their political activity,” Dowden said.

“In addition, there is a requirement under the Directory of Civil Service Guidance, which underpins the Civil Service Code, that ‘contacts between senior civil servants and leading members of the Opposition parties…should…be cleared with…Ministers.’”

Such impartiality is “constitutionally vital to the conduct of government,” Dowden said.

Starmer: ‘No discussions’ on partygate

In a round of interviews earlier Tuesday, Starmer said he was “confident” Gray broke no rules.

“I had no discussions with her whilst she was investigating Boris Johnson whatsoever,” the Labour leader told the BBC.

Gray’s appointment will now be subject to clearance from the revolving-door watchdog that is the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, which may rule on how long Gray should wait before taking up the job with Labour. ACOBA can recommend a delay of up to two years for those starting a new post-government job.

Although there are no sanctions for a breach of the watchdog’s rules, ignoring such advice could be politically damaging, while a lengthy delay could make it harder for Gray to play a role in Labour’s bid to win the next general election.