The cry from rather a lot of those supporting Priti Patel, inexplicably made Home Secretary by alleged Prime Minister Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson, has been that so many of her detractors have remained anonymous, unlike all those 92 signatories to a letter to the increasingly desperate and downmarket Telegraph. How silent they now are, after they discover that the boot is very firmly on the other foot.
Because it is in the same Telegraph that an anonymous briefing has been reported, under the headline “Top Civil Servant backs Patel”. How senior this source is, we don’t know, which is most convenient for the argument being advanced. But we do know that the anonymous source is a “mandarin”. So what are the claims?
“A SENIOR Civil Servant has launched an attack on Sir Philip Rutnam, the Home Office’s former top official, for ‘declaring war’ on Priti Patel, accusing him of having ‘undermined the integrity’ of his profession”. How convenient for Ms Patel and her cheerleaders. Do go on. “In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, the mandarin said they had witnessed officials openly undermining Ms Patel”. More convenient information!
There is more. They were undermining her “in meetings, having apparently ‘disagreed wit what she was trying to do’. The official witnessed the minister becoming ‘frustrated’ but said they never witnessed ‘bullying’”. Quote marks doing some heavy lifting there. Carry on. “The senior Whitehall figure, who has served under both Labour and Conservative Governments, said the ‘normal process’ in Whitehall would have been for Sir Philip [to] take a new role if he and Ms Patel could not work together”.
Which assumes Rutnam had not in fact explored such a move already. But pray continue. “Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said: ‘He should have been saying “you’re the democratically elected Home Secretary and it’s me that’s got to go” … I think it sets a dangerous precedent - senior Civil Servants trying to take down a democratically elected minister. Even if her behaviour was bad, you just do not do this’”.
How miraculous! Every box is coincidentally ticked: “undermining”, no bullying, no shouting, no loss of temper, lots of trowelling on “democratically elected”, lots of talking down Rutnam, who has not remained anonymous. It is almost as if the anonymous “Top Civil Servant” were given a check list of items that had to be included in their statement.
The perfect confluence of cheerleading was completed by Ms Patel’s former chief of staff appearing on the paper review on The Andy Marr Show™ to tell BBC viewers how wonderful she was to work for - “the most caring” boss he could remember - and for this to be backed by Jane Moore, representing the Murdoch mafiosi, who left those viewers in no doubt that Rupe and Rebekah want to see Ms Patel remain in post.
None of which will matter a jot when Rutnam’s employment tribunal happens, or if more bad behaviour is unearthed in the meantime. Because there are limits to talking up someone’s prospects, and expecting this to wash away their shortcomings.
Priti Patel is not out of the woods yet. And her backers just admitted it very openly.
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7 comments:
From the Borisgraph.
"Home Secretary Priti Patel facing a barrage of racist and sexist abuse on social media after allegations she bullied her staff emerged last week"
Inevitable, but I very much doubt this bit.
"Online trolls – some of whom told her to ‘go back to India’ and who mocked her Ugandan background – claimed to be members of Labour, the SNP and Green Party"
All the trolls? I wasn't aware they gave their political allegiance.
It's a right wing faction fight which I intend to watch with glee.
With some luck there'll be blood and snot everywhere.
Expect the large cheque and an NDA to shut the case down.
The Tories seem to beleive having bullies in high office is the way to get things down, whether it's Esther McVey, IDS, Failing Grayling or the loathsome Nadine Dorres.
Bullying is just masking insecurity and incompetence, something which Johnson's government is full of.
Is Ugly Patel still here?
And, if so, why?
She was democratically elected* to be an MP. Anything else is the gift of the PM.
*Under FPTP system, other electoral systems are available.
"The perfect confluence of cheerleading was completed by Ms Patel’s former chief of staff appearing on the paper review on The Andy Marr Show™ to tell BBC viewers how wonderful she was to work for - “the most caring” boss he could remember."
I'm reminded of a scene from Mel Brooks' The Producers, in which Fritz Liebkind, the author of the musical Springtime for Hitler, stands up at the opening night yelling about how the Führer was a kind and gentle soul.
What a lovely moral high ground you people occupy. I mean it's not as if anyone who's not in your little woke bubble is instantly demonized and fair game for any slur you gleefully throw their way. But you are the good guys right?
I hope you all had a good time being bulletproof online bullies the past few years as those memories willl have to sustain you as you sink back to the status of hated pariahs.
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