UK: Gavin Williamson, a senior minister and close aide of the UK prime minister, has resigned over allegations of bullying, resulting in Rishi Sunak losing his first cabinet post.
It was only 14 days since Sunak entered No. 10 Downing Street, where he pledged that his administration would be founded on the values of "honesty, professionalism and accountability".
Williamson has long been a controversial figure at Westminster, so Sunak's choice to appoint him raised concerns about his decision. Williamson had already been forced to resign twice from previous administrations, once after then-Prime Minister Theresa May accused him of disclosing private information related to national security, a charge he vehemently denied.
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Sunak, despite his scandal-stricken past, chose to re-invite him to the cabinet as a minister without portfolio, a position with some clear policy responsibilities.
The action was seen as paying off Williamson, who had been politically supporting the craze during his run for leadership of the Conservative Party. Williamson, the government's former chief whip in charge of upholding party rules, is known for being a powerful player in the background.
However, his reputation quickly caught up with him. Over the weekend, Williamson has been charged with bullying, sending obscene text messages and attempting to exert undue pressure on his fellow Tories.
Williamson posted his resignation on his Twitter account on Tuesday night. In it, he said, "I refute these claims characteristically, but I agree that they are becoming a distraction."
According to a report in The Guardian on Monday, Williamson was accused of intimidating a senior civil servant at the Defense Ministry and asking him to "slit his throat" while serving as May's defense secretary.
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Williamson had already come under criticism for a separate allegation of bullying by a different Conservative MP. Williamson's former deputy when she was chief whip, Anne Milton, was interviewed by Channel 4 News on Tuesday night. Milton claimed Williamson's behavior while in office was "threatening" and "intimidating" and that he would use lawmakers' health issues as "leverage".
She recalled an instance when he asked her to hand over a check to a Member of Parliament who was in need of financial assistance. "Make sure he knows I'm his boss now when you give him this check," he said, waving under his nose. In my opinion, it was not a joke. This was the gravity with which they carried it.
"I offer my resignation with genuine sadness, but I would like to take this opportunity to extend my full and complete support from the backbench," Williamson wrote in his letter.
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Sunak responded, saying he was accepting his resignation "with great sadness", and thanked Williamson for his support and loyalty. Allegations of bullying by him were not mentioned.