BBK Manifesto: Criminalise sexual relationships between trainees and commanding officers
During his time as Defence Secretary, the Rt Hon Ben Wallace MP, promised to criminalise sexual relationships between trainees and commanding officers. He expressed this view in the wake of a number of scandals within the Armed Forces during a conversation he had with The Telegraph in December 2022 and also during the first Parliamentary reception in June 2023 for the Women in Defence All-Party Parliamentary Group. We call on the incoming government to give effect to this promise.
We acted on behalf of Olivia Perks’ maternal family in a widely-reported inquest into her death. Olivia died by suicide just 10 weeks before her commissioning date. A key feature of Olivia’s case centred around an inappropriate relationship between her and a member of training staff.
The case of Gunner Jaysley Beck is another recent, high-profile case regarding the treatment of women in the military, in which we sadly note recurring similarities.
The case of Jaysley Beck had similar themes to those experienced by many of our clients with regard to unwanted advances from male colleagues. In Jaysley Beck’s case they were made by her immediate line manager. From the inquest into her death, we can draw the conclusion that if this policy of criminalising these relationships was the case at the time, it could have altered the events that lead to the death of Jaysley Beck.
Criminalising relationships between trainees and commanding officers would both reduce the number of inappropriate relationships between junior and senior service personnel and help drive fundamental cultural change about sexual relationships in the military. It would be a clear message from the Ministry of Defence regarding the way trainees should be treated and what constitutes acceptable behaviour.
This blog is part of our #ChampioningChange Campaign, specifically, Bolt Burdon Kemp LLP’s 2024 Manifesto for Injured People. In this campaign we call for politicians and candidates to prioritise injured people as they go into the 2024 General Election. This work is informed by our clients’ experiences and our partnerships with charities which support our clients and others like them. If you would like to read more about our full manifesto you can do so here.
