The female employee suspended by Red Bull has appealed against the decision to clear team principal Christian Horner of misconduct following allegations of inappropriate behaviour, according to the PA news agency.
After an investigation, Red Bull dismissed the complainant’s grievances in February, meaning Horner was allowed to remain in his role within the team.
But the employee has now lodged a formal appeal with the F1 team’s Austrian parent company Red Bull GmbH.
Sky Sports News reported the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) – which governs F1 – is also evaluating an inquiry relating to allegations by Horner’s accuser.
The employee, who is believed to have reported in for work in Milton Keynes, was told she acted dishonestly and is understood to have been suspended on full pay.
She also received a legal letter, which gave her five working days to appeal against the outcome of the investigation.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
0:24
Christian Horner hand-in-hand with wife Geri
Horner, 50, who has always denied the claims made against him, was allowed to continue in his role when GmbH cleared him of any wrongdoing.
When questioned about it on 7 March, ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah, Horner said: “There’s been a lot of coverage surrounding this.
“One has to go back to the basis. A grievance was raised, it was fully investigated and it was dismissed. We move onwards.”
“It has been of great interest in different elements of the media for different reasons,” he added.
“I think it’s time to draw a line under it. And to focus on what is going on the track.”
Read more from Sky News: Vaughan Gething to become next first minister of Wales Suspected gunman barricades himself in home after three shot dead Ireland win Six Nations
He said the investigation had been a “very trying period” for him and his family, including his wife, former Spice Girl Geri Horner.
“My wife has been phenomenally supportive through this, as has my family, but the intrusion on my family is now enough, and we need to move forward and focus on what we are here for,” he said.
Sky News has contacted Red Bull Racing for comment.
Christian Horner has said the “intrusion on my family is now enough” and “has been very trying” after scrutiny following claims that he behaved inappropriately towards a female member of Red Bull staff.
Speaking at a news conference in Saudi Arabia, he said: “There’s been a lot of coverage surrounding this.
“One has to go back to the basis. A grievance was raised, fully investigated and it was dismissed. We move onwards.”
“It has been of great interest in different elements of the media for different reasons,” he added. “I think it’s time to draw a line under it. And to focus on what is going on on track.”
It comes as Sky News understands Horner’s accuser was suspended following the investigation into the claim of inappropriate behaviour against the Formula One team principal.
When asked about the matter, Horner said: “This is confidential. I am not at liberty [to talk about it].
“We are all bound by the same restrictions. Even if I’d like to talk about it, I can’t. This has been trying in many respects.”
But, speaking about the impact on his family, Horner said: “The scrutiny on my marriage – I’ve got a beautiful family – it’s been very trying.
“When there [are] children involved, and family involved, it’s not pretty.”
“My wife has been hugely supportive, as has my family, but the intrusion on my family is now enough, and we need to move forward and focus on what we are here for.
“It is time now to focus on why we are here which is to go Formula One racing.”
Horner, who has always denied the allegations against him, was cleared of misconduct by the F1 team’s Austrian parent company Red Bull GmbH last week.
It is understood his female accuser, who is believed to have reported in for work in Milton Keynes on Monday, has been suspended on full pay as a direct result of Red Bull’s inquiry.
A Red Bull Racing spokesperson said: “We are unable to comment as it is an internal matter.”
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
Please refresh the page for the fullest version.
You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow @SkyNews on X or subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.
When you break a record jointly held by three of the biggest British music acts of the last 30 years, you know you’re doing something right.
Before tonight’s Brit Awards, only three artist had ever won four prizes in one ceremony – Harry Styles last year, Adele in 2016, and Blurin 1995.
Raye, who just a few years ago was contemplating a very different future after leaving her record label, went not one but two better last night – picking up a history-making six trophies in total, including the big awards for best artist, best song and best album.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
0:42
Raye on ‘miracle’ night
Speaking to Sky News on the red carpet beforehand, she said she had been left “heartbroken” a few years ago and could only describe her multiple Brits nominations as “a miracle” – and this was before she had won a single prize.
Her Brits record caps an incredible year for the star, which started with her first number one single, Escapism featuring 070 Shake; this was followed by the release of her debut album, My 21st Century Blues, a Glastonbury performance, a Mercury Prize nomination, and Ivor Novello and MOBO awards.
Among the awards won by the star at this year’s Brits was the prize for best new artist, but in fact, despite only being 26, she has been around for quite a few years already.
Raye, whose real name is Rachel Keen, signed to Polydor Records as a teenager and later featured as a vocalist on top five hits by David Guetta and Jax Jones. She also wrote lyrics for the likes of Beyonce and Rihanna.
Despite her talent, her own solo work never seemed to get off the ground. From the outside, she appeared to be flying high with her collaborations, but in 2021 she released a series of tweets claiming she had been stifled and prevented from releasing her solo album.
The journey from ‘heartbreak’ to making history
Image: Raye was joined by her grandmother, Agatha, on the Brits stage as she collected her final award. Pic: PA
“Imagine this pain. I have been signed to a major label since 2014… and I have had albums on albums of music sat in folders collecting dust, songs I am now giving away to A list artists because I am still awaiting confirmation that I am good enough to release an album,” she posted.
“I’m done being a polite pop star. I want to make my album now, please that is all I want.”
By the end of 2022 she had struck out on her own and her dance track Escapism featuring US rapper 070 Shake had gone viral on TikTok.
At the beginning of 2023, the song topped the UK charts. “[I feel] like anything is possible and I was right to back myself,” she told Sky News at the time. “Never give up on your dreams. For someone who [felt] so, like, mediocre and… such a disappointment, actually, for so long, to just receive all the affirmation in the world that I was right to back my music is just…
“For someone who puts words together for a living, I don’t necessarily really have the best words to describe how crazy this is.”
Escapism went on to win the award for best contemporary song at the Ivor Novello Awards. Now, it is song of the year at the Brits – one of six gongs for Raye in 2024, and it feels like this is just the beginning.
Read more on the Brits: The best of the Brits red carpet Kylie the global icon to Raye’s record – the Brits as it happened Raye on the fight for her album: ‘It’s been a real wild journey’
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
1:20
Kylie Minogue reflects on her career
‘The eternal Queen of Pop’
Back in 1987, everybody was doing a brand new dance now – who would have thought back then that Kylie would still be leading the way almost 40 years later?
The 55-year-old Australian megastar has sold more than 80 million records worldwide and in 2020 became the first female artist to score a number one album in five consecutive decades in the UK.
Could there have been a more worthy global icon?
Speaking to Sky News on the red carpet before the ceremony, she reflected on her lifetime of “chipping away” in the industry, “and just learning the craft… that’s an achievement I’m really proud of – highs and lows and everything in between”.
She also recalled her “ultimate” Brits moment – “being ejected from a CD player” for her Blue Monday mash-up of Can’t Get You Out Of My Head in 2002, and added: “The Brits are always fun and I did not imagine all those years ago that I would be having a night like tonight.”
On stage, she was announced as “quite simply, the eternal Queen of Pop” – and she showed exactly why that is with a performance including a medley of songs and several costume changes.
Across her career, Minogue has had seven UK number one singles, including Spinning Around and Can’t Get You Out Of My Head. Last year, she announced her first Las Vegas residency and released her 16th studio album, Tension – including the viral dance hit Padam Padam.
Girl power
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
0:24
Dua Lipa: ‘We need more girl energy’
Female stars dominated this year’s Brits, and not just because of Raye (although her six wins definitely helped).
Of the 17 prizes dished out this year, 12 were won by female acts – among them, Dua Lipa, who picked up the prize for best pop act, and also opened the show with a high energy, acrobatics-infused performance of her latest single, Training Season.
“It’s wonderful to see so many incredible female artists, who I love and I admire and I listen to their music,” Lipa told Sky News on the red carpet before the show. “To be alongside them feels really special. We need more girl energy!”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
2:02
Raye makes Brits history with six gongs
Lipa’s Brits win comes after the huge success of her recent single Dance The Night, from the Barbie soundtrack – and also a cameo in the film.
Charli XCX, who was up for best pop act alongside Lipa, also spoke about this being a strong year for for the female nominees when she chatted to Sky News on the red carpet – giving a shout-out to Raye, saying she was “so happy” to see an independent female artist taking the reins and showing others how to do it.
Post Office scandal victim presents award
Image: Pic: James Manning/PA
Hosted by Maya Jama, Clara Amfo and Roman Kemp, the majority of the ceremony was a light-hearted affair, with skits including a kisscam and The Traitors mother and son stars Diane and Ross revealing their predictions.
But there was a serious note ahead of the first award of the night, which was presented by Jo Hamilton, a former subpostmistress who was a victim of the Horizon IT scandal, and actress Monica Dolan, who portrayed her in ITV’s hit series Mr Bates vs The Post Office.
Mrs Hamilton, 66, told the crowd at the O2 Arena: “I want to thank everyone in the country for the love and the support they have given the postmasters. Please can you keep on supporting us because, despite what the government says, they’re not paying the postmasters.”
Rob Beckett turns up as a giraffe
Image: It’s called fashion, look it up. Pic: Ian West/PA
That’s it, that’s the story. Comedian Rob Beckett turned up on the red carpet dressed in an inflatable giraffe suit.
We can confirm that Green Day in particular were very taken with him, posing for photographs on the red carpet right in front of the Sky News spot.
The reasons behind Beckett’s sartorial choice are unconfirmed, but we suspect it may have something to do with his recently announced upcoming tour, titled Giraffe. Yes, that’s probably it.
Publicity stunt or not, we really, really hope he made all the best-dressed lists.
The UK could send an aircraft carrier to the Red Sea amid the ongoing attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels, the armed forces minister has suggested.
James Heappey indicated an aircraft carrier could be deployed to the region to replace the USS Dwight D Eisenhower – nicknamed the Ike – when it is returned to America.
Alongside the US, the UK has launched a series of airstrikes against Houthi targets in the region following attacks by the rebel group on commercial shipping interests in the Red Sea.
Middle East latest: Iran warns of decisive response to any attack
The UK warship HMS Diamond is stationed in the Red Sea to protect shipping in the key trading route, while US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said the USS Dwight D Eisenhower was sent to the region to “deter hostile actions against Israel or any efforts toward widening this war following Hamas’s attack on Israel”.
In an interview with the House magazine, Mr Heappey suggested a UK aircraft carrier could be sent to the region to “plug a gap”.
“There’s no real need for more carrier mass – for more carriers to be in the region than the Ike can provide. She’s a very capable ship,” he said.
“So our judgment was that with the Ike on station – the Eisenhower on station – and with jets available from Akrotiri, that we were able to meet the challenge as it is now.”
He indicated the Royal Navy could step in “when the Eisenhower goes home, if we were needed to plug a gap in US deployments, or if the situation deteriorates and we need more”.
Read more: The military firepower the UK and US have at their disposal Biden vows to respond to attack that killed US soldiers. What are his options? Iran and the US were once friends – what happened?
“The fact is the Eisenhower can’t stay there forever,” he added. “And so there’s a thing about just maintaining a carrier presence in the region where we might cooperate with the Americans to provide a capability there.”
The UK currently has two aircraft carriers in service – the HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales.
Earlier this week Rishi Sunak urged Iran to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East after three US troops were killed in a drone strike on a US base in Jordan.
US President Joe Biden has blamed Iran-backed militias for deaths, which have come after months of strikes by the Houthis against US forces since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
Storm Babet is continuing to batter the UK – with another red “danger to life” warning in place for parts of eastern Scotland and four severe flood warnings across England and Wales.
England, Wales and Northern Ireland have had warnings in place since Babet first hit on Wednesday, but eastern Scotland has suffered the worst of the storm which has left three people dead.
Train operators around the UK have advised customers not to travel due to widespread disruption following the storm.
Meanwhile, thousands remain without power as the adverse conditions continue.
A rare red weather warning is in place for parts of eastern Scotland for a third day on Saturday, with the country’s First Minister Humza Yousaf to warn: “We have not seen the last of this.”
Mr Yousaf has also posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, to urge people to heed the red weather warning and evacuate if instructed.
It comes as an amber warning for rain, meaning “extensive flooding to homes and businesses is possible”, is in place for parts of northeast Scotland covering Aberdeen and Cromarty.
The red warning is in place until 6pm.
Read more: Full list of warnings – follow live storm updates
Twitter
This content is provided by Twitter, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Twitter cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to Twitter cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow Twitter cookies for this session only.
Enable Cookies
Allow Cookies Once
Meanwhile, the Environment Agency has issued three severe “risk to life” flood warnings around the River Derwent in Derbyshire.
They are the highest level of warning and are in place at Derby City Water Treatment Works, Little Chester, Eastgate and Cattle Market, as well as Racecourse Park at Chaddesden.
There were 282 flood warnings, meaning flooding is expected, and 220 flood alerts, meaning flooding is possible, across England as of 12 noon on Saturday.
The fourth severe flood warning has been issued for the River Severn at the village of Llandrinio, nearly Welshpool, in northern wales.
It also covers isolated properties in the Severn-Vyrnwy confluence area including Hendre Lane, Haughton and Haimwood.
Wales had eight further flood warnings in place as well as 14 flood alerts as of 12 noon on Saturday.
In the northeast of England a yellow weather warning for wind, meaning there was a small chance of fast-flowing or deep floodwater, was in place until midday.
Image: The warnings in place for Saturday
Train operators urge people not to travel
It comes as London North Eastern Railway (LNER), Avanti West Coast and Northern Rail have all warned against travelling as lines are widely flooded.
LNER has said there is “an extremely limited service” in place due to flooding between Doncaster and Wakefield.
The service has also been impacted by speed restrictions in Scotland and trains and crews being out of position after extensive disruption on Friday.
There are no LNER services north of Edinburgh on Saturday and rail replacement services are not available because of road closures.
The train operator said remaining services may be subject to short-notice cancellations.
Image: A man uses his homemade boat to rescue elderly residents from their home in the village of Debenham, Suffolk
Image: A woman is helped to safety in Brechin, Scotland
Northern Rail said all lines between Cheadle Hulme and Wilmslow are blocked due to damage to the overhead electric wires.
Services are also not able to run from Sheffield to Nottingham or Lincoln due to flooding.
Trains are also unable to travel between Leeds and Doncaster, Harrogate and Bradford.
The line between Newcastle and Morpeth is also closed due to viaduct damage, Northern Rail added.
Avanti West Coast has said its services are also severely disrupted and it has asked customers to not travel between Crewe and North Wales and that people should only travel between Preston and Glasgow or Edinburgh if absolutely necessary.
Thousands still without power
The Energy Networks Association said around 100,000 customers had been affected by power cuts due to Storm Babet but as of Saturday morning 96% had been reconnected, leaving 4,000 still without power.
Around 55,000 people were left without power on Friday as a result of the storm.
Some 45,000 people were reconnected to the grid as of the evening, the Energy Networks Association said.
Image: A man with a dog sits on dinghy as emergency services assist in the evacuation of people from their homes in Brechin
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
0:17
River turns into raging torrent as Storm Babet hits.
Babet leaves three people dead
A man in his 60s died after getting caught in fast-flowing flood water in the town of Cleobury Mortimer in Shropshire on Friday.
Police Scotland previously said a falling tree hit a van near Forfar in Angus on Thursday evening, killing the 56-year-old driver.
A 57-year-old woman also died on Thursday after being swept into a river in Angus.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
3:10
Residents in tears as severe floods hit Brechin
The council in Angus said it was in uncharted territory dealing with “extreme and really challenging conditions” on Friday – with people rescued from 60 homes in and around Brechin.
The village of Edzell was completely cut off with no emergency access except via helicopter, the council said.
Meanwhile, a major search was under way following reports of a man trapped in a vehicle in floodwater in Aberdeenshire.
Police Scotland said the alarm was raised at 3am on Friday near the village of Marykirk.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
0:28
Plane skids off runway at Leeds Bradford Airport
It comes as the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) warned a second major river could breach in the country on Saturday.
Aberdeenshire Council has said the latest SEPA modelling indicates a considerable risk of flooding on the River Don at Inverurie, Kemnay and Kintore between 10am and 2pm.
Hundreds of homes in Scotland have already been flooded after the River South Esk breached its banks
Leeds Bradford Airport has said it is “working hard to reopen” at 2pm today and has urged people not to travel to the terminal before that point. The airport closed on Friday after high winds forced a passenger plane to skid off a runway.
Tui customers who were due to travel from Leeds Bradford on Saturday are being directed to Manchester Airport, the airline has said.
All residents have been told to leave the town of Brechin in Angus due to flooding from Storm Babet.
A severe flood warning is set to be put in place for the Brechin River and South Esk area, Angus Council has said.
Those in the affected areas should leave their homes.
The council will be going door to door shortly.
It comes as severe weather warnings are in place in parts of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland as Storm Babet sweeps the UK.
Live: The latest Storm Babel news
Image: A workman clears the drains in the village of Edzell in Angus
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
Please refresh the page for the fullest version.
You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow @SkyNews on X or subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.
David Beckham was left “clinically depressed” after his red card in the 1998 World Cup, his wife Victoria has said.
Her comments are part of a new Netflix documentary about the footballer, which delves into his career with interviews from friends and family – as well as Posh and Becks themselves.
Beckham was sent off during the match with Argentina in 1998, after kicking Diego Simeone – a game that England went on to lose in a penalty shoot-out.
In the second episode of the documentary, Victoria, 49, and David, 48, talk about the abuse they had levelled at them in the late 1990s as a result of the sending off.
After the game, an effigy of Beckham hung in a pub, and during the following season, Manchester United’s team bus was pelted with rocks and pint glasses at an away game at West Ham.
Victoria said: “He was absolutely broken. He was in pieces.
“He was really depressed, absolutely clinically depressed.
“It pained me so much, I still want to kill these people.”
Beckham added: “I wish there was a pill you could take which could erase certain memories.
“I made a stupid mistake. It changed my life. (The questions when he came back) ‘how do you feel about letting your country down?’ and ‘you are a disgrace’.
“We were in America, just about to have our first baby, and I thought ‘we will be fine, in a day or two people will have forgotten’.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
1:17
May: King receives honey from David Beckham
Read more: David Beckham shares throwback picture with Victoria – celebrating 24 years of marriage David Beckham breaks silence on Joe Lycett’s money-shredding stunt Romeo Beckham ‘proud and happy’ to join Brentford FC on loan from Inter Miami
“I don’t think I have ever talked about it, just because I can’t. I find it hard to talk through what I went through because it was so extreme.
“Wherever I went, I got abused every single day.
“To walk down the street and to see people look at you in a certain way, spit at you, abuse you, come up to your face and say some of the things they said, that is difficult.
“I wasn’t eating, I wasn’t sleeping. I was a mess. I didn’t know what to do.
“The boss (Alex Ferguson) called me. He said ‘David, how are you doing?’ I think I got quite emotional. He said ‘how are you doing, son?’. I said ‘not great boss’. He said ‘OK, don’t worry about it, son’.
“That was the only thing I could control, once I was on the pitch, then I felt safe.”
Spreaker
This content is provided by Spreaker, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Spreaker cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to Spreaker cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow Spreaker cookies for this session only.
Enable Cookies
Allow Cookies Once
Click to subscribe to Backstage wherever you get your podcasts.
Beckham added: “It brought a lot of attention that I would never wish on anyone, let alone my parents, and I can’t forgive myself for that. That is the tough part of what happened, because I was the one that made the mistake.
“When I have gone through difficult moments, I was able to block it out, but inside it killed me.
“Any time I was kicked during that season, it was like the (opposition team) had got two goals.
“As horrible as it was to look up to Victoria in the stand (getting that abuse), it was the one thing which spurred me on.”
Actor and radio presenter Craig Charles says he was rushed to hospital after becoming unwell during his BBC radio show.
Charles, known for acting roles on Red Dwarf and Coronation Street, told listeners on BBC Radio 6 Music that he had missed a show after spending 24 hours in hospital after coming down with a mysterious condition while on air.
“When we were doing the show on Wednesday… my hand couldn’t grip the pen properly, and my fingers were tingling, and I had a pain in the right side of my shoulder, going up my neck and into the back of my head,” he said.
Members of his production team told him to stop and go to hospital but Charles “was like ‘No, no, no, we’ll get through the show, we’ll get through the show'”.
As soon as his slot finished at 4pm, the 58-year-old was met by his wife Jackie who drove from the BBC headquarters in Salford to Wythenshawe Hospital.
Charles said: “Now they gave me an instant ECG to make sure that my heart was fine and all that, and [said] ‘go and wait in the waiting room and we’ll call your name’.
“So I go and wait in the waiting room, this was at half past four, and they called my name at around a quarter to 10 at night.
“Now this is no disrespect or no criticism of Wythenshawe Hospital, they were brilliant, they were professional, they were caring, they were dedicated.”
He was then told that he needed to have a CT scan – “it is fine, by the way, there’s nothing wrong with the brain” – and also an MRI scan, which would mean an overnight stay, but the hospital did not have any spare beds.
“So we spent the night in the A&E in the triage department, with the blue curtain pulled around us – me and Jackie on this little single hospital trolley,” said Charles.
“We got about an hour’s kip until some guy came in screaming because he’d dislocated his shoulder.
“And we woke up like that and were up ever since. We got out the hospital just as Chris [Hawkins] was wrapping up my show yesterday, so nearly 24 hours in hospital and they still don’t know what’s wrong with me.
Kyle Walker has said he won’t “roll out the red carpet” for Kylian Mbappe during England’s clash with France.
The Three Lions defender looks set to be faced with containing the Paris Saint-Germain superstar during Saturday’s quarter-final.
Mbappe has scored five goals and leads the race for the golden boot in Qatar with many speculating how England will try to hold him off.
Walker, a Manchester City right-back, has said he is ready for the challenge and told a press conference: “We respect that he is a good player in good form, but I am not going to roll out a red carpet for him and tell him to go and score.
“I’m representing my country at the quarter-final of a World Cup, it’s do or die really. If we lose, we go home. He’s not going to stand in my way of hopefully winning a World Cup for my country.”
“I do understand what I need to do and that is to stop him,” he added.
“It’s probably easier said than done, but I don’t underestimate myself. I have played against a lot of great players at Man City and England.
“I have to treat it as another game, I have to take extra care and give him the respect he deserves, but not too much respect because he’s also playing England and we can cause them problems.”
Walker has come up against Mbappe four times in the Champions League and has earned plaudits for how he has previously dealt with the French forward.
“Obviously it is always going to help because I’ve played against him a number of times now with Manchester City,” added Walker.
“He is a fantastic player in great form. It is not going to be an easy task, but as a professional footballer you want to play against the best and I think he is one of the best if not the best in the world at the moment.”
Image: Declan Rice missed training through illness on Wednesday
Further up the pitch, concern has been raised regarding England’s midfield after Declan Rice missed training through illness.
The West Ham midfielder wasn’t present for training with the rest of squad on Wednesday, just three days ahead of the clash with France.
Other players who missed training include striker Callum Wilson, who has yet to return to training after picking up a muscle problem following the last-16 win over Senegal, Raheem Sterling, who returned to the UK after intruders broke into his home, and Ben White, who left Qatar for personal reasons last week.
The Royal Air Force says it has sacked some personnel following allegations from members of the Red Arrows.
In a statement, the RAF said the action was a result of an inquiry that revealed “a broad range of unacceptable behaviours” at the aerobatics display team.
It said that “several” personnel have been investigated, with a range of outcomes “up to and including dismissals from the RAF”.
In August, the head of the RAF vowed to address “legitimate questions” raised about allegations of sexual harassment and bullying within the Red Arrows along with a number of other issues.
That was a response to a story in The Sun and The Times newspapers about a “toxic culture” in the aerobatics display team.
Both newspapers reported the departure of two of the team’s nine pilots, revealing that Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston had launched an inquiry in December, which documented allegations of bullying, misogyny and sexual harassment.
More than 40 personnel had given evidence, including young, female recruits.
On Friday, the RAF said: “The RAF Police Special Investigations Branch investigated specific allegations and whilst there were no criminal cases to be answered, we continue to look into the circumstances that led to the inquiry.
Read more: Head of the RAF says he will address ‘legitimate questions’ over diversity and harassment ‘as a priority’ China’s armed forces recruiting dozens of British ex military pilots in ‘threat to UK interests’
“To date, several RAF personnel have been investigated under the RAF’s Major Administrative Action Procedures.
“These investigations have resulted in a range of outcomes up to and including dismissals from the RAF.”
It said that the inquiry had resulted in a number of recommendations, many of which have already been implemented, while others are “being pursued as a priority”.
The team has been given “extensive training on unacceptable behaviours and ‘Walk On By’ cultures”, it added.
“The RAF commends the actions of all those who came forward to provide the inquiry and subsequent investigations with their evidence.
“It is important for unacceptable behaviour to be called out and reported wherever and whenever it is encountered.
“We take all allegations of unacceptable behaviour extremely seriously and will continue to take decisive action against anyone who fails to uphold our high standards, in accordance with the Ministry of Defence’s Zero Tolerance Policy.”
