Whistleblower report reveals that women continue to face sexual harassment in the UK military. As per the findings of the Atherton 2021 committee, the conviction rates in military courts for sexual harassment were four to six times lower than in civilian courts.
After the testimony of a whistleblower who was raped on a base and forced to leave the forces was published by the parliament’s Defence sub-committee, MPs of UK renewed calls for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to move rape cases out of the court martial system.
The testimony of the servicewoman was published on Thursday, May 18. Her story is one of the eight cases revealing continuing rape and sexual abuse in the UK military. Other reported cases include charges of sexual assault and abuse in the past two years and senior officers dismissing complaints.
The servicewoman, who was raped on a base by someone she had been in a casual relationship with, was at first hesitant to report the incident “for fear of recriminations”. She was then advised by her military GP to “choose her partners more carefully in future”.
As reported in the Guardian, a second doctor persuaded her to report the incident to her chain of command, even after which no action was taken against her abuser. It was decided by the senior officers, in consultation with the second doctor that it was necessary “for the career of the rapist and the elite unit he served in” to keep him in...
On 30 April 2026, DOJ announced a new anti-fraud initiative: the Fraud Oversight through Careful Use of Statistics (FOCUS) initiative. The FOCUS initiative is intended to strengthen DOJ’s working ...