I have this morning resigned as permanent secretary of the home Office.

I take this decision with great regret after a career of 33 years.

I'm making this statement now because I will be issuing a claim against the home office for constructive dismissal.

In the last 10 days, I have been the target of a vicious, on orchestrated briefing campaign.

That statement comes off the back of newspaper reports accusing his boss, the home secretary Pretty Patel off bullying her staff on that she was not trusted by the security service is so.

Philip said a campaign had blamed him for the leaks and that Miss Patel, whose department he was now suing, had her hand in doing so.

The home secretary categorically denied any involvement in this campaign to the Cabinet office.

I regret I do not believe her.

She has not made the efforts I would expect to disassociate herself from the comments with allegations against the home secretary emerging, the prime minister said earlier this week that he had full confidence in Ms Patel, while other supporters said that while she was a demanding boss, she was never a bully.

Yet Sir Philip said he had to publicly address the home secretary's behaviour despite he claims being offered a financial settlement by the Cabinet office.

I have received allegations that her conduct has included shouting and swearing, belittling people, making unreasonable and repeated demands, behavior that created fear.

I needed some bravery to call out the senior public servants union.

The FDA called on the prime minister to stop the kind of behavior that forced so Phillips resignation, something echoed today by the chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee.

The work of the Home Office is far too important toe operate with a dysfunctional and distracted way of operating and with a poisoned relationship between ministers and civil servants.

Because this is not being sorted out, they need to act.

So Philip is not without his own criticisms.

His tenure at the Home Office saw the wind rush scandal that led to the resignation off there, then Home secretary Amber Run, and in July last year he had to answer accusations that his department was more prone to leaks than others.

You undertook to launch an inquiry into leaks in your department for seem to be happening quite a lot.

How's that going?

I didn't I don't recall exactly which leak that was that exchange.

Refer to one of many.

There have been a number of weeks way We do regularly undertake leak enquiries.

Responding to today's news, the Cabinet secretary, thanks to Phillip for his long and dedicated career announced a temporary replacement on Dhe said The Home Office is vital work to keep our citizens safe on our country.

Secure continues uninterrupted.

Yet for a government seeking to navigate the recent floods on the Corona virus outbreak, today's very public resignation and attack will cast on unwelcome shadow pool.

McNamara is here in the studio with me now pull.

How big a deal is this?

Well, let me go almost Borders saying this last year, but it's crack out again for 2020.

This is no normal.

A great big political resignations from MPs or ministers don't happen all that often, but from the civil service from the people who are meant to operate behind the scenes, I don't recall anything like this.

I mean, it's not uncommon for senior civil servants on their ministers toe fallout, but it's handled quietly behind closed doors there, shuffled off.

There you find a new job, maybe even early retirement.

It's not done with the threatening of a court.

Case on disability isn't just take aim.

A pretty Patel.

He takes aim at the rest of government.

He spoke of a wider pattern in government, and that's a very similar message to that off such a jab it when he resigned just a while ago, right?

So some Tory MPs have said, actually, this is pretty bad form from a senior civil servant to do this.

That pretty Patel also has formed when it comes to a resignation.

She was forced to resign in a previous incarnation.

House safe issue tonight.

What the moment from people who've been to begin to it sounds like support for her is definitely holding up.

Loyalists.

The PM that I've been speaking to today there have been quick to point out this.

Philip hasn't exactly had a great history of the home off, especially after last year or so with with Windows.

They've also been briefing out Look, here's a guy saying, I've never spoken to the media.

And yet he's operating a pretty media savvy way today.

A press conference right at the beginning of the weekend we're talking about is our top story tonight.

It's gonna be in all the front pages of Sunday papers tomorrow.

It's good.

Dominate.

He knows what he's doing.

Okay, on that note, perhaps there's been some other distraction of completely ostensibly unrelated news today.

Tell us about that.

Yeah.

There might be one other story that sharing the front pages tomorrow.

The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has announced that he is engaged to his partner, Carrie Simmons on also, they're having a baby early summer.

You can expect a new baby in number 10.

It's gonna be busy Summer for all of us.

We wish them all the best, Paul.

Thank you very much indeed.

Well, a little early.

I spoke to the former head of the civil service, Lord Kerslake, and began by asking him how well he knew.

So Philip brought them a new AA affiliate.

Very well.

In fact, I was part of his appointment.

First appointment is a permanent secretary and transport, and I knew him to be a very serious, able senior civil servant who had been in the civil service pretty much on his career on Dhe.

Absolutely recognized.

His role with ministers on indeed was valued by ministers who he worked with.

I mean, the language he used today was was very stark, I have to say, and it was complaining about the campaign against the Mets smear campaign, people briefing against him.

Having said that, when it comes to media is not exactly a wallflower himself is he managed to get the BBC's political editor to see him this morning.

The camera's all ready and waiting.

He clearly wants to make a statement.

He knows how to use the media.

Well, he does on.

Indeed, you would expect him to know how the media works in Israel, But I think this is the last thing on Earth he would have expected to do or wanted to do.

He must have been pushed to the limit, the very limit and beyond, to have chosen not just to resign.

I mean, that was a big thing.

But to resign in this way to make these accusations and to in effect, say I'll take the government to court.

But taking the government to court?

Does this not set a dangerous precedent for what is already a bit of a proxy war between the civil service and elected officials?

Well, I think it does set a dangerous precedent, but he clearly feels very strongly not just about his own treatment, which I think has been frankly disgraceful, but also about the treatment of other civil sevens.

And I think it's one thing toe have a difficult relationship between a permanent secretary and a minister.

It's another toe.

Have a minister, effectively bullying their private office, which is what this adds up to, and that's unacceptable.

In fact, it's very clearly country to the to the ministerial code, which the prime minister put his name, too.

But if the minister feels that he or she doesn't have the full backing off her or his top civil servant are, they don't write to force him to resign.

No, I don't think it works that way.

I mean, there has to be a relationship of trust between the minister and the permanent secretary.

It's clear from s a Phillips statement this morning.

Then he tried to repair the damage but was rebuffed by the home secretary.

We know that Dominic Cummings, that Prime Minister Senior Advisor, has his problems with the civil service.

Are we now looking at a permanent, simmering kind of civil war between the civil service and this government?

Will I really hope that we aren't now looking at a period of really bad relationships of that sort?

Because it will be bad for the civil service.

They pride themselves in serving the government of the day.

But it'll also be bad for the government.

They've got big challenges in front of them on.

They need the civil service working with them on those issues.

If the accusations against Pretty Patel leveled against her by her former top civil servant are proved to be correct, should she resign?

Well, I think if we go into this industrial tribunal on dhe, they come out in a way where it's pretty hard to refute them than it does raise questions.

Obviously, it's for the prime minister to make that decision.

We need to see more of the facts.

But as I said earlier, look at the ministerial code.

The forward, written by Boris Johnson, says no bullying no harassment, it couldn't be clearer.

And if there is evidence of that happening in the face of his clear direction, then that raises big questions for that particular minister.

So let's be clear here.

If she is seemed to have broken the prime minister's own code off behavior towards civil servants, should she resign?

Yes, on that, I think it's ah position where she must seriously consider in position.

Yes, Old cozy.

Thank you very much indeed.