Sir Gavin Williamson has resigned from government after facing accusations of bullying.

His departure came shortly after an ex-civil servant, who claimed Sir Gavin told them to “slit your throat”, made a formal complaint against the Cabinet Office minister.

In his resignation letter that he shared on Twitter, Sir Gavin said he “refutes the characterisation of these claims”, but that the allegations were “becoming a distraction for the good work this government is doing for the British people”.

As a result, he had “decided to step back from government so that I can comply fully with the complaints process that is underway and clear my name of any wrongdoing”.

Accusations against Sir Gavin came to light over the weekend when reports claimed he had sent abusive text messages to former chief whip Wendy Morton.

Ms Morton made a complaint to the Conservative Party about the messages, but earlier today confirmed she was reporting him to the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS), parliament’s independent watchdog.

But on Monday, a further allegation surfaced, with a former Ministry of Defence official saying he had told the to “slit your throat” and, on another occasion, “jump out of the window” in what they called a sustained campaign of bullying.

An hour ago, that ex-civil servant confirmed they too would be going to the ICGS as the incidents had an “extreme impact” on their mental health.