Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many settlements for (a) bullying, (b) harassment, (c) discrimination, (d) physical and sexual abuse and (e) assault did his Department make in 2024-2025.

This answer covers employment tribunal settlements and common law compensation claim settlements.

For employment tribunal settlements, in some cases, it has been necessary to categorise harassment and discrimination together, where the claimant has alleged complaints of both within the same claim form.

Bullying: nil

Harassment and discrimination: seven settlements

Discrimination: six settlements

Physical and sexual abuse: nil

Assault: nil

For claims, the answer reflects settlement of common law compensation claims against the Ministry of Defence where bullying, harassment or discrimination, sexual harassment or sexual abuse and physical abuse or assault are the main causes of action. Settlements have been defined as claims where both compensation and claimant legal costs have settled. Given the way such claims are categorised and recorded, it is not possible to separate between bullying, harassment and discrimination. Sexual harassment and sexual abuse are categorised together, as are physical abuse and assault.

Bullying, harassment and discrimination: Eight settlements

Sexual harassment and sexual abuse: 12 settlements

Physical abuse and assault: Fewer than five settlements

This answer does not include any settlement of damages in 2024-2025 where legal costs have not been finalised. Numbers fewer than five are not provided in order to reduce the possible inadvertent disclosure of claimant identities.

Both the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) and War Pensions Scheme (WPS) are no-fault schemes to pay compensation for injuries, illness or death caused or made worse by service. Awards are granted for injuries/illnesses/deaths and not specific events within their service. Identifying if the claimant has stated their injuries/illnesses/deaths were suffered as a result of clinical negligence would exceed the appropriate cost limit as it would require a manual file search of every claim file.

The Raising Our Standards Programme, launched in September 2024, is driving vital cultural change through improved education, training, reporting systems, and trust in leadership. We are strengthening reporting pathways to ensure employees feel safe to report and challenge behaviours. For non-criminal complaints, the MyComplaints App enables Service and Civil Servant personnel to raise issues outside their chain of command. The forthcoming Tri-service Complaints Unit will handle the most serious cases of bullying, harassment and discrimination.

Together, these initiatives create a culture where victim-survivors are supported through every route they choose, empowering them with autonomy and confidence. This commitment underpins a safer, more respectful environment for all personnel.