Sir Gavin Williamson resigned as the UK’s Secretary of State for Education on Monday over accusations of bullying by former Chief Whip Wendy Morton. He said that the accusation was becoming a “distraction” at work for him and assured that he will clear his “name of any wrongdoing”.

“As you know, there is an ongoing complaints process concerning text messages I sent to a colleague. I am complying with this process and have apologised to the recipient for those messages,” Williamson said in the resignation addressed to UK PM Rishi Sunak, which he later shared on Twitter. 

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The 46-year-old politician has been under a lot of pressure since expletives-ridden text messages to Tory colleague and former Chief Whip Wendy Morton were published on Sunday. 

Responding to the resignation letter, PM Sunak said that he accepts it with “great sadness” and added: I support your decision to back and understand why you have taken it.”

Labour Party members took the opportunity to get back at the ruling government. Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner said that Williamson’s resignation shows “yet another Tory government has descended into chaos.”

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 “This is yet another example of Rishi Sunak’s poor judgment and weak leadership. It is clear that he is trapped by the grubby backroom deals he made to dodge a vote, and is incapable of putting country before party,” she added.

Along with Morton’s accusation, a former Defence Official also said that Williamson had asked him to slit his throat and jump out of the window. He claims that Williamson ran a sustained bullying campaign which has had an “extreme impact” on his mental health. 

Morton has filed a formal complaint with the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) – the UK parliament’s independent watchdog. The civil servant said that he plans to follow suit.