Soldiers and other Armed Forces personnel accused of rape should no longer be tried in military courts because of “shockingly low” prosecution rates, the Victims’ Commissioner has told the Defence Secretary.

       In a letter to Ben Wallace, Dame Vera Baird warned that the integrity of the military was at risk unless it ended a culture of protecting its own by giving victims of sexual assaults access to “independent justice” in civilian courts.

       She cited figures showing that conviction rates in civilian courts for rape were five times those of military courts, at 50 per cent versus 10 per cent in the five years up to 2019.

       Dame Vera said there had been shocking instances uncovered by MPs of victims being pressured to suppress complaints of rape within military units, repercussions for those who reported the crime, and victims not being believed and discouraged from reporting the offence.

       Calling for the Armed Forces Bill to be amended for serious sexual assaults including rape to be tried in civilian courts, she wrote: “It is crucial that crimes are recognised and victims’ needs are met. Victims cannot be ignored simply because their attacker is ‘one of our people’ in a military environment. They must have access to independent justice.

       “Furthermore, they must have access to independent support to enable them to cope and recover from their experiences. Without this basic access to justice, the integrity of the military is at risk.”

       Dame Vera welcomed recent moves by Mr Wallace to challenge the culture of sexist, misogynistic and bullying behaviours in the Army when he met with military leaders.

       However, she warned that the failure to switch serious crimes like rape to the civil justice system was “inextricably linked” to wider concerns about military culture and discipline.

       Dame Vera pointed to a critical review last year by retired judge Shaun Lyons which recommended court martials should no longer include murder, manslaughter and rape for offences committed in the UK, except when the consent of the attorney general was given.

       The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has instead proposed a new protocol of “concurrent jurisdiction”, where military and civilian courts would simultaneously have jurisdiction over a specific case.

       However, Dame Vera warned this was a “regrettable” move and lacked clarity when the Lyons review was crystal clear that murder, manslaughter, rape, sexual assault should be dealt with by civil courts.

       Civilian system will ‘provide independent support for victims’

       She accepted that the civilian system was “not perfect” with prosecution rates that were “inexcusably low”. However, she added: “The civilian system is independent and is able to provide independent support for victims. The work that you have begun will secure the best of the Army whilst removing the worst.

       “Giving victims of rape and sexual assault access to independent, civilian support and justice, will be an important step in ensuring this success.”

       An MoD spokesman said that it believed the concurrent jurisdiction was the right approach, with victims having the right to report offences in whichever jurisdiction they chose.

       They said that it did not tolerate abuse, bullying, harassment or discrimination, adding: “We will now review the points made by the commissioner in her letter and provide a full response in due course.”

       The spokesman added: “We agree wholeheartedly with Vera Baird, that victim’s needs must be fully considered. The service justice system is independent. It’s a tired, inaccuracy to suggest that it’s not.”