Boris Johnson says there is no place for bullying in Government departments in letter to ministers

Boris Johnson has written to ministers and heads of Government departments warning them there is "no place for bullying" after an investigation into Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, found that she had shouted and sworn at staff.

In a joint letter with the Cabinet Secretary, Simon Case, the Prime Minister said there was a "particular duty" on ministers and permanent secretaries to create a culture that was "professional, respectful, focused and ambitious for change and in which there is no place for bullying".

Mr Johnson also stressed the "paramount importance" of relationships between politicians and their civil servants being based on "mutual trust and respect".

"This includes keeping internal conversations private, feeling able to speak freely and honestly about matters of state and to speak constructively about things that are not working so that we can fix them together promptly," he said.

The Prime Minister's letter follows the resignation of Sir Alex Allan, his adviser on ethics, after Mr Johnson overruled him and rejected his findings that Ms Patel had "unintentionally" bullied staff.

However, Sir Alex also said Ms Patel's "forceful expression" stemmed from frustration at a "lack of responsiveness and support" by senior Home Office civil servants, that no one gave her feedback on the effect of her behaviour and that relations had improved since the departure of the permanent secretary at the Home Office, Sir Philip Rutnam.

The investigation into Ms Patel was prompted by the resignation of Sir Philip after what he claimed was a "vicious and orchestrated campaign" against him, alleging that her behaviour had led to a climate of fear in the department.

Ms Patel apologised again on Monday for the upset she had caused to staff as a former Cabinet colleague, Nicky Morgan, Baroness Morgan of Cotes, revealed how even civil servants were shocked at the way officials in her department undermined her.

She recalled a meeting with Ms Patel on online harms laws and said that when the Home Secretary had left "I saw her officials actively undermine what she had just said in the meeting room", adding: "I was shocked, my officials at DCMS were shocked, so I'm afraid to say I think there was a culture problem and I hope very much that it can be sorted out."