Considering next steps

The Independent's Morning Headlines email [The Independent]( May 03, 2023 [View online](   [Morning Headlines]( 1 / [Tory fury as Sue Gray refuses to cooperate with inquiry into her job with Labour]( A government inquiry into the departure of senior civil servant [Sue Gray]( to join Labour has been paused after she refused to engage with the probe. Cabinet Office minister Oliver Dowden said the government would “consider next steps” after Ms Gray “chose not to” make representations as part of the process. Ms Gray, [who led her own Cabinet Office inquiry](into allegations of lockdown-breaking parties being held in Downing Street, was offered a job as [Labour]( leader Keir Starmer’s chief of staff in March. Conservatives have raised concerns that she had been in contact with Labour about the role while she had responsibility for looking into alleged rule-breaking in No 10, prompting the government to launch a Whitehall investigation. In a statement to the House of Commons, Mr Dowden said the government had made a “confidential assessment” about whether the former [Partygate]( inquiry chair had broken any rules in engaging with the opposition and had forwarded it to the Whitehall anti-corruption watchdog. But the written statement did not say whether the Cabinet Office deemed her to have broken rules, as had been suggested.   2 / [NHS unions vote to accept government pay deal – but nurses could still strike]( Health leaders raised concerns about ‘worrying’ prospect of further walkouts by unions that did not agree to the offer 3 / [Nurse accused of murdering babies ‘thought of killing herself’ over allegations]( Lucy Letby said she always wanted to work with children 4 / [Man arrested after suspected shotgun cartridges thrown into Buckingham Palace grounds]( Police said the man was also carrying a ‘suspicious bag’ and a controlled explosion has been carried out 5 / [Princess Anne throws doubt on ‘slimmed-down’ monarchy]( The Princess Royal says the monarch is ‘key’ and shares her view on King Charles as ruler THE BIG QUESTION [Who is Sue Gray? The ‘Partygate’ civil servant back in the spotlight for alleged Labour ties]( [Sue Gray](, the former senior civil servant who rose to fame when she was handed responsibility for untangling the “[Partygate](” saga, is back in the headlines again as a report is set to be published determining whether or not she herself broke rules when meeting with Labour officials to discuss a role with the party. It emerged on Tuesday evening that the government inquiry into her departure to join Labour has been paused after she refused to engage with the probe. Ms Gray was offered the chance to become [Sir Keir Starmer](’s chief of staff in March and duly resigned her post but has since been accused of failing to disclose the discussions in advance, a potential breach of the rules governing civil service conduct, which is being investigated by the independent Advisory Committee on Business Appointments. 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