Michael Gove blasts Remainer civil servants with bad ‘attitudes’ for treating Brexit like a ‘big mistake’

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EMBARGOED TO 0001 FRIDAY MAY 26 File photo dated 29/04/23 of Michael Gove speaking on the second day of the Scottish Conservative party conference at the Scottish Event Campus (SEC) in Glasgow. The Government's levelling-up policy has significant flaws and is unlikely to achieve its objectives without a significant shift in approach, MPs have said. A damning report by the cross-party Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee found funding for short-term initiatives and a lack of transparency on allocations created barriers to progress in addressing regional economic inequality. Issue date: Friday May 26, 2023. PA Photo. See PA story POLITICS LevellingUp. Photo credit should read: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire

MICHAEL Gove today launched a direct attack on Remainer civil servants for treating Brexit like a “big mistake”.

The Levelling Up Secretary revealed some Whitehall officials are still bitter about Britain’s divorce from Brussels.

Michael Gove today revealed that civil servants across Whitehall have been treating Brexit like a “big mistake”

He told the Crisis What Crisis podcast that across the civil service there’s “a sense that Brexit was a big, historic mistake”.

And he admitted sour partisan feelings are slowing down ministers from making positive policy changes.

Mr Gove said: “If we fast-forward to now, I think one of the issues inescapably has been the attitude that some people have had towards Brexit.

“So there are some ministers who have been hard-driving, who have worried that across the civil service there was a sense that Brexit was a big, historic mistake.

“Therefore there hasn’t been the same enthusiasm for some of the changes that are necessary as there might have been for other policy changes.”

In the podcast the leading Brexiteer also reflected on his brutal sacking by Boris Johnson.

During his final days as PM, Boris dealt one final blow to his ally-turned-nemesis by sacking him days before being toppled from the top job.

Mr Gove said: “I was at home with one particular very old friend, Boris rang, he said, ‘look, I’m rearranging the government,’ and all the rest of it, ‘and I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to step back,’ and so on.

“And I said, ‘so you’re not going?’ And he said, ‘no, no, I’m afraid you are’.”