GRAY ZONE
Partygate buster Sue Gray resigns from civil service as she’s appointed Labour chief of staff
SUE Gray, the top mandarin who busted Boris Johnson over partygate, dramatically quit the civil service today to join Labour.
Ms Gray informed the Cabinet Office this afternoon she's resigning with immediate effect to join Sir Keir Starmer as his new Chief of Staff.
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Officials entered her home this morning, removing all government related documents and IT, it is claimed.
A Labour Party spokesperson said: “The Labour Party has offered Sue Gray the role of chief of staff to the Leader of the Opposition.
"We understand she hopes to accept the role subject to the normal procedures. Keir Starmer is delighted she is hoping to join our preparations for government and our mission to build a better Britain”.
The bombshell move will be investigated by the Cabinet Office, which confirmed this afternoon it's "reviewing the circumstances under which Gray resigned".
A spokesperson said: “We can confirm that Sue Gray has resigned from the post of Second Permanent Secretary in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
"This was accepted by the department Permanent Secretary and Cabinet Secretary with immediate effect.
“We will not be commenting further on individual personnel matters."
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Ms Gray will have to wait at least three months before she can start working for Sir Keir, as per the Civil Service code.
The karaoke fan will also have to get the nod from Rishi Sunak, who has the final say over career moves out of Whitehall.
Just yesterday she was spotted enjoy a St David's Day wine reception with the PM in No10.
A senior government source told The Sun: “This doesn’t smell right at all.
"Serious questions need to be asked about how this has come about.”
Another government source added: “This feels all wrong. I thought she was meant to be independent and impartial - both in her role as a senior civil servant but also in the Partygate investigation?
"It's hard to believe this now and seems that all along she’s been eagerly waiting for the day she can be Starmer’s chief enforcer. Her integrity and judgement will now rightly be questioned.
"This is truly dreadful and should be stopped in its tracks.”
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An ally of Boris Johnson described the appointment as a "giant Labour and Civil Service stitch up."
They said: "It raises questions about the entire Partygate saga and to what extent this was a calculated and coordinated attempt to take out a Prime Minister."
The resignation comes as Tory MPs gather in the posh Windsor Fairmont Hotel for an overnight away day, where they'll seek to heal bitter divides in the party.
Attendees were raging as the news of the resignation broke.
Red Wall MP Brendan Clarke-Smith said: ";As a former Cabinet Office minister myself, I am genuinely shocked to see this.
"After the events of last year, people will quite understandably be questioning the appropriateness of this appointment, including issues of impartiality."
Former minister Lord David Frost added: "Who can now say it's only ministers and party politicians who no longer respect the unwritten conventions of the British constitution?"
Ex-Culture Secretary and BoJo ultra loyalist Nadine Dorries labelled labelled Ms Gray's move "not surprising".
"Whilst writing the report, she used a QC who tweeted out pro-Labour anti government tweets," Ms Dorries said.
"Her communications assistant briefed against Boris from day one.
"The Gray report was a stitch up."
Ms Gray shot to fame in 2021 when she took over the No10 Partygate probe from Simon Case.
She spent months reading hundreds of witness accounts and interviewing scores of Downing Street staff about illegal boozing at the heart of government.
In her final report, Ms Gray tore into Boris Johnson, describing "failures of leadership and judgment" inside No10.
The mandarin said "too little thought" was often given to the public's hardship during the pandemic.
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And she blasted the booze culture inside government, demanding changes in behaviour be made.
The probe contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson, who resigned as PM just two month after its full findings were published.