11:49 EDT, 27 April 2021
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A civil servants union has won the right to challenge Boris Johnson in High Court after he backed Priti Patel in the bullying row.
The Association of First Division Civil Servants (FDA) launched judicial review proceedings in February over the Prime Minister s decision to disregard the findings of his adviser on ministerial standards.
Sir Alex Allan left his advisory role in Downing Street when Mr Johnson decided Ms Patel did not breach the rules, even after she was found to have bullied staff.
In February Ms Patel s permanent secretary Sir Philip Rutman resigned, claiming there had been a vicious and orchestrated campaign against him. He said he intended to sue the Government for constructive dismissal.
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LETTERS
Former first minister Alex Salmond waving as he leaves after giving evidence to a Scottish Parliament Harassment committee which is examining the handling of harassment allegations him, at Holyrood in Edinburgh. Picture date: Friday February 26, 2021. PA MY first taste of Scottish, left-wing politics occurred in the late 1960s, on a bus travelling down to a major demonstration in London. We were as mixed a delight as any sweetie shop of the time could offer. Somewhere on the M1 a fracas erupted in the rear of the bus. Whether it was over some point of ideology or a stray Maoist had made some indecent proposal to one of the Marxist-Leninist shop workers, we’ll never know.
REGARDING Rebecca McQuillan s article ( The Tories overplayed their hand – most Scots still trust Sturgeon , The Herald, March 5), while the Conservatives overplayed their hand on the eve of the First Minister s evidence to the committee, it is commendable that both Labour and the LibDems were quick to assert their reservation of judgment until after the inquiry was concluded. Inevitably most reviews published on social media have been coloured by entrenched attitudes on each side of the independence debate. However, like many who were willing to judge the proceedings impartially, I felt Nicola Sturgeon acquitted herself remarkably well on Wednesday, especially given the emotional dimension involved. Perhaps I should not have been so surprised given that she and her predecessor fall within the 10 most accomplished UK politicians of this century. For a nation comprising eight per cent of the UK population, that too is remarkable.