Ruth Kelly faces another parliamentary probe to see whether she has improved staff morale since taking over from John Prescott .

Allegations of bullying came to light during an ODPM staff survey in 2005, with 10% of staff saying they had been bullied in the past year. In its response to Parliament, just before the reshuffle – which installed Ms Kelly at the top of the Department for Communities and Local Government (the ODPM's replacement) – officials disclosed civil servants were being trained on how to treat staff properly. The select committee monitoring the department plans another inquiry next year, to review progress.