MOD now settling twice as many bullying and harassment claims, official figures reveal
The amount of bullying, harassment and discrimination claims that have been settled by the Ministry of Defence has more than doubled since 2019 - in terms of the number of cases and the value of the payments.
The information was revealed in official figures obtained by shadow defence minister Maria Eagle, and came shortly after 60 senior women complained about a "hostile and toxic" working environment at the MOD.
"That both the number of settlement payments and the average payout has more than doubled in just two years lays bare the MOD's problems with bullying, harassment and discrimination," she said.
Ms Eagle said: "The Conservatives are continuing to fail to get grips with issues in defence. These revelations are shocking and expose a deeply concerning trend within the MOD.
"Ministers must lead from the top to root out unacceptable behaviour in the MOD and the Armed Forces.
"Labour in government will legislate to establish an Armed Forces Commissioner to act as a strong independent voice to improve the lives of serving personnel and their families."
The data shows that the average compensation settlement made by the MOD following bullying, harassment or discrimination claims reached £235,564 in 2022/23.
In 2020/21 the figure was £100,527.
And in the same period the number of settlements rose from fewer than five to 12.
A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said: "We do not tolerate abuse, bullying or discrimination of any kind, which is why we have introduced many changes to improve the experience for everyone across defence, including improvements to reporting mechanisms, diversity and inclusion training, and increased access to support.
"We actively encourage any personnel who believe they have experienced or witnessed unacceptable behaviour to report it.
"All allegations of unacceptable behaviour are taken extremely seriously and are thoroughly investigated.
"If proven, swift action will be taken."
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