Great Britain: who is Sue Gray, the civil servant who makes Boris Johnson “nervous”?

Her name is not known and yet she knows many secrets in the UK. Sue Gray has been shaking the less and less strong man of 10 Downing Street for a few weeks.

In the past, it has already brought down several political leaders. When this 64-year-old civil servant looks at you with her clear eyes, you feel that she reads you. Sue Gray is in charge of the investigation into the illegal parties that took place at the residence of the Prime Minister in full confinement. She is currently number 2 of the Cabinet office, which coordinates government action.

According to a close friend of Boris Johnson, it makes him “nervous”. In 2015, the BBC devoted an article to him with this title: “The most powerful person you’ve never heard of“.

The journalist says: “Ms Gray’s influence is staggering. Her scope is wide: part of her job is to sign memoirs (including those of elected politicians) to check that they haven’t revealed unnecessary things. Civil servants across government said she intervened on everything from their wages and working conditions to what documents they may or may not publish.”.

Another nickname, which says a lot: “Acting God”. Sue Gray is a long-serving public servant. She entered the civil service in the 1970s, rising through the ranks to become head of the Probity and Ethics department. His motto: go straight. In 2012, she supervised an investigation into Andrew Mitchell, Secretary of State accused of having insulted a policeman: he resigned. In 2017, she investigated Damian Green, Theresa May’s minister accused of having pornographic images on his office computer: he resigned.

It is his investigation that will decide the rest of Boris Johnson’s political career. She will sort through the testimonies, the photos, the accusations and will report to her boss. The irony is that it’s Boris Johnson himself.

Depending on his findings, the Tories could launch a vote of no confidence in the Prime Minister. Boris Johnson could also decide to resign. Or else, nothing will happen.

Honest, uncompromising, Sue Gray has never shown herself to be malleable. In her life she did something offbeat. Stopping politics for a few years to open a pub, with her husband, in Northern Ireland. But even between two pints, it was no joke. A customer of the time remembers : “She was very careful that there was never a problem in her establishment.”