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Dominic Raab insists he won’t quit over failure to make Afghanistan call while on holiday

Smiling foreign secretary is asked if he will resign as he walks into No 10, but replies ‘no’

Rob Merrick
Deputy Political Editor
Thursday 19 August 2021 20:11 BST
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Dominic Raab says he won’t resign following Afghanistan delays

A defiant Dominic Raab says he will not resign after failing to make a crucial call to help fleeing Afghan interpreters while on holiday, despite growing demands for him to quit.

The phone call was delegated to a junior minister, as the Taliban neared Kabul last Friday – as the foreign secretary reportedly declined to intervene personally from his Crete hotel.

Filmed walking into Downing Street, a smiling Mr Raab was asked if he would resign, but told reporters: “No.”

He is already under fierce pressure for failing to return from the Greek island until Monday morning, being seen on the beach the previous day – as the Afghan capital crumbled.

Downing Street has so far refused to comment on the controversy and on whether Boris Johnson retains confidence in his foreign secretary.

Mr Raab has also been caught up in a cabinet spat with defence secretary Ben Wallace, who accused the Foreign Office of quickly evacuating its diplomats and leaving young soldiers in charge.

Labour said he “should be ashamed” of his actions and questioned why he would not make a phone call if told “it could save somebody’s life”.

Lisa Nandy, the shadow foreign secretary, said: “How can Boris Johnson allow the foreign secretary to continue in his role after yet another catastrophic failure of judgment?

“If Dominic Raab doesn’t have the decency to resign, the prime minister must show a shred of leadership and sack him.”

The Liberal Democrats called for Raab to “resign today”, while the Scottish National Party said his position is “completely untenable and he must resign, or be sacked”.

A former national security adviser also criticised Mr Raab’s failure to make the phone call, piling further pressure on him.

Kim Darroch said officials only contacted ministers while they are on holiday if they considered it “absolutely essential” for them to intervene in a vital issue.

“If they were recommending this call strongly, then I think he should have made it,” Sir Kim told BBC Radio 4.

The calls came after the Daily Mail reported that, while on holiday in Crete, Mr Raab was urged by his officials to speak with his Afghan counterpart, Hanif Atmar.

Pressure was needed to secure help with the evacuation of translators who had worked with the British military, as the Taliban advanced on Kabul.

But, according to the report, officials were told that Mr Raab was not available and that a junior minister, Zac Goldsmith, should make the call instead.

As Lord Goldsmith was not Atmar’s direct equivalent, there was a delay until Saturday – and possibly Sunday, the day Kabul fell – before the request was made.

The Foreign Office acknowledged that Mr Raab did not make the call, saying: “The foreign secretary was engaged on a range of other calls and this one was delegated to another minister.”

However, Mr Wallace defended his cabinet colleague, arguing that, by Friday, the Afghan government was “melting away quicker than ice”.

“A phone call to an Afghan minister at that moment in time would have not made a difference,” the defence secretary said.

Mr Raab chaired a call of G7 foreign ministers to discuss the Afghanistan crisis on Thursday. The foreign secretary said they agreed to try to secure an “inclusive political settlement” and enable humanitarian assistance in the country, despite the Taliban takeover.

Labour insisted the government still had questions to answer over Mr Raab’s holiday. The opposition challenged Mr Raab to publish a full list of calls and meetings – including dates and times – that he conducted whilst out of the country.

Ms Nandy said: “For the prime minister and foreign secretary to be on holiday during the biggest foreign policy crisis in a generation is an unforgivable failure of leadership. The government’s negligence will cost lives.”

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