dame antonia romeo: Cabinet secretary frontrunner hit by multiple bullying complaints
Documents and witness statements have renewed scrutiny of dame antonia romeo’s conduct during a posting in New York, with multiple former staffers describing behaviour they called "unreasonable", "degrading" and "demeaning. " The revelations come as officials consider her for the role of cabinet secretary, the most senior civil service post.
What the documents and testimonies say
Contemporaneous records compiled during an internal review set out a series of complaints from staff based in New York when she served as consul general between 2016 and 2017. The materials describe a pattern of conduct that some colleagues characterised as bullying and focused at times on self-promotion over institutional priorities.
One piece of testimony captured in the files reads: "She's a diplomat, not a D-list celebrity. My 15-year-old, social-media-obsessed, brother is less shameless in his self-promotion. " Another member of the team described feeling "emotionally battered. " The documents also raised questions about the use of expenses while promoting trade and business activity in the immediate aftermath of the EU referendum.
Internal survey data cited in the files showed 47% of New York staff said they had experienced bullying in the workplace that year — the highest level recorded anywhere in the service at the time. Those figures, and the witness accounts, sit at the centre of the renewed concerns about her suitability for the head of the civil service role.
Investigations, the official position and new contacts
Officials have maintained that three allegations were investigated and that investigators found "no case to answer. " The Cabinet Office view is that the three strands were presented within a single complaint dossier and that, while she was spoken to about her management style after the investigation was closed, no comparable issues have arisen in subsequent senior roles.
However, former colleagues have pushed back on the framing that there was only one complaint. Several people involved in the matter have said multiple individuals raised concerns at the time and that those were compiled together when the papers were passed to London. A second individual has now formally contacted the Cabinet Office to flag reservations about her appointment, adding to the chorus of unease among some former staff.
Critics highlight the distinction between a single dossier and multiple complainants, arguing that grouping separate accounts into one file can obscure the scale and pattern of behaviour being described. Supporters of her candidacy point to subsequent senior postings, including a top role at a major domestic ministry, where no similar allegations have been presented.
Implications for the appointment and wider questions
The role of cabinet secretary demands leadership of the civil service and stewardship of workplace standards. The resurfacing of detailed testimony and fresh contacts with the Cabinet Office complicates the process of assessing whether those standards were met in past postings and whether lessons were learned.
Decision-makers must weigh the contested archival record, the outcome of the earlier investigation, and the views of current and former colleagues. For many observers, the central questions are whether complaints were handled transparently at the time, whether the investigative outcome was proportionate to the material presented, and how the civil service will respond to new evidence before any final appointment is confirmed.
As the process continues, officials face pressure to set out clearly how past concerns were resolved and to explain the steps taken to ensure effective leadership and workplace wellbeing across the service.
