Priti Patel is facing mounting political pressure to face MPs today and explain what is happening at the Home Office after her senior civil servant quit with a broadside at her leadership.
Labour led calls for her to address the fallout in the Commons after she was branded a liar and a bully by Sir Philip Rutnam.
He sensationally resigned as Permanent Secretary on Saturday and announced plans to take the Government to court.
The mandarin had been at the centre of a furious spat over Ms Patel’s handling of her department which spilled over into a bitter briefing war.
Last night Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he had full confidence in his ‘fantastic Home Secretary’.
But Labour leadership candidate Sir Keir Starmer said: ‘The Home Secretary has a duty to come to Parliament on Monday to explain the allegations made about her own conduct.’
Last night it was claimed that Ms Patel, 47, is nicknamed ‘my personal piranha’ by husband Alex Sawyer, because she is ‘quite small and combative’, according to the Mirror.
Labour led calls for Ms Patel (pictured arriving at work today) to address the fallout in the Commons after she was branded a liar and a bully by Sir Phillip Rutnam.
Labour leadership candidate Sir Keir Starmer said: ‘The Home Secretary has a duty to come to Parliament on Monday to explain the allegations made about her own conduct’
Sir Philip Rutnam sensationally resigned as Permanent Secretary on Saturday and announced plans to take the Government to court
The shadow Brexit secretary has called for Cabinet Secretary Sir Mark Sedwill to start ‘an immediate investigation’ into the circumstances surrounding Sir Philip’s departure.
The civil servant vowed to sue the Government for constructive dismissal after his name appeared on a ‘hitlist’ of senior civil servants that Downing Street wanted to sack that was leaked to the media.
It is understood that tensions in the Home Office came to a head in September after Sir Philip blocked a pre-election announcement that Ms Patel wanted to roll out Taser stun guns for police.
It was also felt at the top of Government that Sir Philip had been ‘a roadblock to change’ and has consistently tried to stymie reforms needed to get Britain ready for Brexit.
In his statement on Saturday, Sir Philip said the campaign against him included ‘false’ claims that he had briefed the media against the Home Secretary.
He said: ‘The Home Secretary categorically denied any involvement in this campaign to the Cabinet Office.
‘I regret I do not believe her. She has not made the effort I would expect to dissociate herself from the comments.
‘I believe these events give me very strong grounds to claim constructive, unfair dismissal and I will be pursuing that claim in the courts.’
Cabinet Secretary Sir Mark issued a brief statement about two hours after Sir Philip quit, saying he had accepted his resignation ‘with great regret’, and adding: ‘I thank him for his long and dedicated career of public service’.
‘ I absolutely do have confidence in Priti Patel,’ he added. ‘I think she is a fantastic Home Secretary’
Speaking during a visit to a laboratory in Colindale, north London, Boris Johnson (pictured) gave his full support to Ms Patel in her role in ‘one of the toughest jobs in Government’
Mr Johnson last night intervened in the growing row to back his most senior female minister.
Speaking during a visit to a laboratory at the Public Health England National Infection Service in Colindale, north London, he said: ‘I absolutely do have confidence in Priti Patel … I think she is a fantastic Home Secretary.’
‘It is never an easy job, as anyone who has been Home Secretary will testify. It is one of the toughest jobs in Government.
‘There is a big, big task ahead of us now. We are delivering, at last, a new immigration system for this country, a points-based immigration system.
‘That will take a lot of work by the Home Office, a fantastic department.’
His comments followed reports that a complaint about Ms Patel’s conduct was made when she was Employment Minister at Department for Work and Pensions.
The BBC reported that the 47-year-old was the subject of a formal complaint whilst in her former junior role, which she served in between May 2015 and July 2016.
Sir Philip’s resignation was followed by almost 24 hours where no minister spoke out in defence of the embattled former international development secretary.
Yesterday morning Health Secretary Matt Hancock had earlier defended his Cabinet colleague as being ‘extremely courteous’ in her dealings with colleagues.
He told the BBC’s Andrew Marr programme: ‘Priti is a very determined Home Secretary.
‘I also think she is extremely courteous, and in every dealing I’ve had with her she has been very courteous.’
And Conservative ally Nusrat Ghani MP, who was sacked as a minister by Mr Johnson last month, said the criticism of Ms Patel had sexist overtones.
The former transport minister Ms Ghani told Sky News: ‘I do think it’s curious that if you’re providing leadership, if you’re determined, working at a fantastic pace, that within men that is seen as a fantastic skill and for women sometimes it’s seen as challenging.’