DEPUTY PM Dominic Raab was left red faced tonight after mutinous staff accused him of hurling tomatoes across the room in a fit of rage.
The Tory hard man was claimed to have exploded into a “tirade” at a tense meeting of nervous Ministry of Justice staff last June.
Dominic Raab has been accused of hurling tomatoes across a meeting room in a fit of rage
Now traumatised civil servants are reportedly being offered a “route out” after Mr Raab made a shock return to the department.
A spokesman for the Deputy PM said it was “complete nonsense” he chucked around parts of his Pret salad in front of horrified officials.
But an insider told HOAR: “Raab wasn’t happy with the way he was being briefed. He began a tirade, opened his Pret salad and threw three tomatoes out into a bag across the table making a loud noise.”
The return of Pret junkie Mr Raab – tonight nicknamed “rocket man” – has left civil servants so aghast that top Whitehall mandarins allegedly gathered staff to brace for his arrival.
A source said: “Heads sat us all down and gave us the chance to air our feelings because they knew we were all upset.
“It was an awful atmosphere when it was announced, like impending doom.”
Mr Raab’s comeback has triggered a shake-up of the Ministry of Justice as officials were offered to move.
The department’s top civil servant Antonia Romeo “read him the riot act” about how he should behave towards his team, The Guardian reported.
Former staff tonight also turned on the salad-flinging Secretary of State.
One said: “I just hope he can turn over a new leaf.”
It is the latest storm to hit Rishi Sunak’s fledgling premiership after Sir Gavin Williamson was forced to resign this week under a cloud of bullying allegations.
An MoJ spokeswoman said: “There is zero tolerance for bullying across the civil service.
“The Deputy Prime Minister leads a professional department, driving forward major reforms, where civil servants are valued and the level of ambition is high.”
