Applicants seeking to join RAF described as ‘useless white male pilots’ in bid to hit ‘impossible’ diversity targets

Published

2 years ago

May 31, 2023

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White men seeking to join the Royal Air Force were described as “useless white male pilots” in leaked emails that expose the pressure placed on recruitment officers to improve diversity.

A number of selection boards to place new recruits on courses – a crucial part of maintaining the fighting strength of the RAF – were also cancelled if they did not include women or ethnic minorities, according to the messages, which have been seen by Sky News.

It can also be revealed the air force is paying £5,000 each to 31 white men – a total of £155,000 – who it found had been unfairly disadvantaged by a recruitment policy that – under the leadership of Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston, the head of the RAF – sought to boost female and ethnic minority ratios in the air force, according to a defence source.

A further review indicated hundreds more had been disadvantaged, the source said.

The RAF confirmed that 31 individuals had received payments but did not confirm the amount.

The revelations appear to contrast with repeated assurances by Air Chief Marshal Wigston that well-intentioned efforts to improve diversity did not discriminate against white men, two informed defence sources said.

The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), who is due to retire from his post this week, has also repeatedly insisted that his service’s operational capabilities were never impacted.

The RAF insisted that there was no contradiction.

A spokesperson said: “Selection standards were not and have not been altered and there was no compromise of entry standards and no impact on the frontline or operational effectiveness.”

But a defence source with knowledge of the emails described them as a “smoking gun”.

Sky News first revealed last August that Group Captain Elizabeth Nicholl, the then head of RAF recruitment, had resigned in protest at what she, according to defence sources, deemed to be an “unlawful order” effectively to pause the selection of white male recruits onto training courses in favour of women and ethnic minorities to hit “impossible” diversity targets.

That order was never implemented because of her resignation, but Sky News also previously revealed that the RAF had taken steps to “artificially inflate” diversity numbers in recruitment prior to Group Captain Nicholl taking charge.

The leaked emails are dated back to that period in 2020 to early 2021 when recruitment and selection was led by her predecessor, Group Captain William Dole.

Sky News understands these emails and others have been submitted as evidence to an internal inquiry launched last year by the Ministry of Defence into the circumstances which led to the resignation of Group Captain Nicholl.

‘Predominantly white male heavy’

One exchange on 19 January 2021 by a squadron leader in the recruitment force to a sergeant, with another officer also included, exposed the pressure that was apparently being applied to filter out white male recruits and fast-track women and ethnic minorities.

Sky News has chosen not to identify the names of the middle management involved in sending the correspondence.

Under a subject line entitled: “BOARDING PROFILE”, the squadron leader wrote: “I would be grateful if you could provide me with a breakdown of the candidates awaiting boarding, by Br [branch – the type of profession, such as pilot, engineer or chef] and BAME [black, Asian and minority ethnic]/Female.”

He continued: “I noted that the boards have recently been predominantly white male heavy, if we don’t have enough BAME and female to board then we need to make the decision to pause boarding and seek more BAME and female from the RF [recruitment force].

“I don’t really need to see loads of useless white male pilots, lets [sic] get a [sic] focussed as possible, I am more than happy to reduce boarding if needed to have a balanced BAME/female/Male board.”

Another email sent the following day by the same squadron leader to a more senior member of the recruitment team, entitled “BOARDING PROFILE UPDATE”, suggested a struggle to hit diversity targets.

It also discussed how efforts were being made to load more ethnic minority and female candidates onto selection boards – which is the process through which new recruits are chosen for different branches at the training college for enlisted recruits, RAF Halton, or at RAF Cranwell, where officers are trained.

These efforts included the cancellation of boards that only comprised white men.

“You will note however that the pot for BAME and female is drained,” the squadron leader wrote.

“From 336 Cs [candidates] we have c10% female, 5% BAME which we will burn through quickly using the boarding profile proposed.

“As you know we select approx. 45-50% of BAME and female that we board therefore we expect to select c15 female and 7 BAME from the current cohort.

“The demand signal needs to go back to RF [the recruitment force] to focus now on sending all the BAME and female they have.

“We have cancelled 2 x boards next week due to them having no female/BAME or priority Br [priority branch] on them”.

An RAF spokesperson said: “The Royal Air Force will not shy away from the challenges we face building a Service that attracts and recruits talent from every part of the UK workforce.

“We will continue doing everything we can to increase our recruiting intake from under-represented groups within the provisions of the law.”

UK

Peter Sullivan who has spent 38 years in jail for murder has conviction quashed

Published

4 hours ago

May 13, 2025

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Peter Sullivan who has spent 38 years in jail for murder has conviction quashed

A man who has spent 38 years in prison for murder has had his conviction quashed – but insisted he is “not angry” or “bitter”.

The Court of Appeal ruling in the case of Peter Sullivan ends what’s thought to be the longest-running miscarriage of justice in British history.

He was found guilty of the 1986 murder of 21-year-old Diane Sindall, who had been beaten, raped and left in an alleyway in Bebington, Merseyside.

Mr Sullivan – who was jailed in 1987 – had always maintained his innocence and first tried to challenge his conviction in 2016, but the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) declined to refer the case, and he lost his own appeal bid in 2019.

Two years later, he again asked the CCRC to refer his case and new tests, ordered by the commission, revealed Mr Sullivan’s DNA was not present on samples preserved at the time.

At a hearing on Tuesday, lawyers for Mr Sullivan told the Court of Appeal in London that the new evidence showed that Ms Sindall’s killer “was not the defendant”.

Mr Sullivan attended the hearing via video link from HMP Wakefield, listening to his conviction being quashed with his head down and arms folded before appearing to weep and putting his hand to his mouth.

A relative in court also wept as the judgment was read out.

‘The truth shall set you free’

In a statement following the ruling, Mr Sullivan – now 68 – said: “I lost my liberty four decades ago over a crime I did not commit.

“What happened to me was very wrong, but does not detract that what happened… was a heinous and most terrible loss of life.”

He added: “It is said the truth shall set you free. It is unfortunate that it does not give a timescale as we advance towards resolving the wrongs done to me.

“I am not angry, I am not bitter.

“I am simply anxious to return to my loved ones and family as I’ve got to make the most of what is left of the existence I am granted in this world.”

Outside court, Mr Sullivan’s sister Kim Smith said she was “ecstatic” at seeing her brother’s conviction quashed.

She told reporters: “We lost Peter for 39 years and at the end of the day, it’s not just us; Peter hasn’t won, and neither has the Sindall family. They’ve lost their daughter, they are not going to get her back.

“We’ve got Peter back and now we’ve got to try and build a life around him again. We feel sorry for the Sindalls and it’s such a shame this has had to happen in the first place.”

Barristers for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said the DNA evidence was “sufficient fundamentally to cast doubt on the safety of the conviction” and that there was “no credible basis on which the appeal can be opposed”.

Lord Justice Holroyde, sitting with Mr Justice Goss and Mr Justice Bryan, said in light of the new DNA evidence “it is impossible to regard the appellant’s conviction as safe” as he quashed the conviction.

Hunt for DNA match

Merseyside Police has confirmed detectives are now “carrying out an extensive investigation in a bid to identify who the new DNA profile belongs to, as to date there is no match on the national DNA database”.

Detectives are also contacting individuals identified in the original investigation to request voluntary DNA samples.

That initial investigation was the largest in the force’s history and, for many officers, the “frenzied” nature of the attack made it the worst case they had ever encountered.

Ms Sindall, who was engaged to be married, had just left her shift as a part-time barmaid at a pub in Bebington when her small blue van ran out of petrol.

She was walking to an all-night garage when she was attacked.

Mr Sullivan, who was 29 at the time and described as a loner, initially denied the attack but later signed a confession.

Questions have since been raised about whether he had proper legal representation during police interviews. Evidence related to bite marks on Ms Sindall’s body, considered crucial at the trial, has also since been called into question.

At the time of Mr Sullivan’s trial in 1987, DNA technology was not available and subsequent requests for new tests had been refused.

‘Nobody felt safe’

On the grass verge close to where Ms Sindall’s body was found, a memorial stone has been placed in memory of her and “and all of our sisters who have been raped and murdered”.

Her murder sent a chill through the community and led to the creation of the Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre on Merseyside. “Nobody felt safe, it was a very scary time,” said the centre’s Jo Wood.

She says the uncertainty has resurfaced. “There’s someone out who killed Diane Sindall,” said solicitor Ms Myatt.

“The biggest fear we’ve got is of the unknown and now we’ve got an unknown. We don’t know who it might be. Who knows who this person is? Are we going to encounter him?

“We might have encountered him, we don’t know, we just know that he’s out there.”

Ms Sindall’s family told Sky News they did not want to comment on the case.

Mel John, landlord of the pub where Ms Sindall worked on the night of her death, said: “I’m glad he’s being released if he’s innocent. It has been a long time.”

Mr Sullivan is also aware, his solicitor says, of the impact on Ms Sindall’s family.

“We are very sensitive and respectful to the fact that there is a victim, Diane Sindall and her family, that will be affected by this process,” the solicitor said.

UK

Tory MP Patrick Spencer charged with sexual assaults at Groucho Club

Published

4 hours ago

May 13, 2025

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Tory MP Patrick Spencer charged with sexual assaults at Groucho Club

Tory MP Patrick Spencer has been charged with two counts of sexual assault at London’s Groucho Club.

The charges follow two alleged incidents involving two different women at the private members’ club, in Soho, in August 2023, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said.

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Mr Spencer – who is the Conservative MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich – will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday 16 June.

A Conservative Party spokesman said Mr Spencer, 37, has been suspended by the Tories and had the whip withdrawn.

The Metropolitan Police said he was charged after attending a voluntary interview at a London police station on 13 March this year.

Frank Ferguson, head of the CPS special crime and counter terrorism division, said: “Following a review of the evidence provided by the Metropolitan Police Service, we have authorised two counts of sexual assault against Patrick Spencer MP.

“The charges follow two alleged incidents involving two separate women at the Groucho Club in central London in August 2023.

“The Crown Prosecution Service reminds all concerned that criminal proceedings against this defendant are now active and that he has the right to a fair trial.

“It is extremely important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.”

Mr Spencer was first elected to Parliament last year with a majority of 4,290.

It is understood he was asked not to attend the parliamentary estate by the Tory chief whip while police enquiries were ongoing.

A Conservative Party spokesman said: “The Conservative Party believes in integrity and high standards. We have taken immediate action.

“Patrick Spencer MP has been suspended from the Conservative Party, and the whip withdrawn, with immediate effect.

“The Conservative Party cannot comment further on an ongoing legal case.”

The Groucho Club, in Dean Street, opened in 1985 and became a renowned meeting place for A-list celebrities and others, including actors, comedians and media executives.

The club was named after the comedian and actor Groucho Marx, who reportedly once said he would refuse to join any club that would have him as a member.

It was originally set up as a more relaxed alternative to traditional gentlemen’s clubs, according to the venue’s website, which adds that members should be in the creative industry “and share the club’s maverick spirit”.

Before becoming an MP, Mr Spencer worked in finance for private equity firm IPGL, a company chaired by his father, former Conservative Party treasurer Lord Michael Spencer.

He later took a job at the Centre for Social Justice think thank before becoming a senior adviser at the Department for Education.

He made his maiden speech in the Commons in July last year during a debate on the MPs’ code of conduct relating to second jobs, during which he said the “most important thing to the people across my constituency” was “restoring a sense of moral probity and public spiritedness to our political system”.

Sky News has contacted Mr Spencer for comment.

UK

Man arrested over arson attacks after fire at Sir Keir Starmer’s house

Published

10 hours ago

May 13, 2025

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Man arrested over arson attacks after fire at Sir Keir Starmer's house

A 21-year-old man has been arrested over a series of arson attacks, police have said, after a fire at a house owned by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

The suspect was arrested in the early hours of Tuesday on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life, according to the Metropolitan Police.

He remains in custody.

Emergency services were called to fires at the doors of two homes in north London within 24 hours of each other – one just after 1.35am on Monday in Kentish Town and the other on Sunday in Islington. Both properties are linked to Sir Keir.

Detectives were also checking a vehicle fire last Thursday on the same street as the Kentish Town property to see whether it is connected.

Part of the area was cordoned off as police and London Fire Brigade (LFB) investigators examined the scene.

Neighbours described hearing a loud bang and said police officers were looking for a projectile.

The prime minister is understood to still own the home, which was damaged by fire on Monday, but nobody was hurt. Pictures showed scorching at the entrance to the property.

Sir Keir used to live there before he and his family moved into 10 Downing Street after Labour won last year’s general election. It is believed the property is being rented out.

In the early hours of Sunday, firefighters dealt with a small fire at the front door of a house converted into flats in nearby Islington, which is also linked to the prime minister.

In a statement, police said: “As a precaution and due to the property having previous connections with a high-profile public figure, officers from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command are leading the investigation into this fire.

“Enquiries are ongoing to establish what caused it. All three fires are being treated as suspicious at this time, and enquiries remain ongoing.”

The prime minister’s official spokesman said: “I can only say that the prime minister thanks the emergency services for their work and it is subject to a live investigation. So I can’t comment any further.”

Kemi Badenoch has condemned the suspected arson attacks.

Writing on X, the Conservative leader said: “This is a shocking incident. My thoughts are with the prime minister and his family. No one should face these sorts of threats, let alone people in public service.

“It’s an attack on our democracy and must never be tolerated.”

Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick told Sky News on Tuesday: “It’s important that the prime minister and anyone in public life has their family, their homes, protected.

“It is absolutely wrong, disgraceful, for any individual to take the kind of action that we saw against the prime minister’s home.”