PRITI Patel has apologised after a probe found “staff felt bullied” at the Home Office under her leadership.
But Boris Johnson has stood by Ms Patel and refused to sack her – the PM ordered MPs to “form a square” of protection around her.
Ms Patel said in a statement: “I am sorry that my behaviour in the past has upset people.
“It has never been my intention to cause upset to anyone.”
The move sparked chaos in Whitehall as the PM’s top standards adviser Sir Alex Allan then quit over his decision not to give the Home Secretary the boot.
The report found that while there was no behaviour which amounted to outright bullying, staff felt that they had been victim to unnecessary behaviour from Ms Patel.
Sir Alex Allen said in the report: “My advice is that the Home Secretary has not consistently met the high standards required by the Ministerial Code of treating her civil servants with consideration and respect.”
He added that Ms Patel “approach” had “amounted to behaviour that can be described as bullying in terms of the impact felt by individuals”.
Although the report acknowledged Ms Patel may have been unaware of how her staff felt her behaviour “still amounted to a breach of the Ministerial Code, even if unintentionally.”
