Deepcut: Call for public inquiry after Cheryl James inquest
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has been urged to open a public inquiry into physical and sexual abuse at the Surrey barracks where Cheryl James and four other young soldiers died.
The call comes in the wake of the inquest into the death of Private James, whose parents live in Llanymynech, near Oswestry, which exposed to public scrutiny the toxic, violent and sexualised environment in which Cheryl and other young soldiers lived in the late 1990s.
Liberty has written to Mr Fallon on behalf of the families of Private James, Sean Benton and James Collinson – who died at Deepcut between 1995 and 2002 – who all support a public inquiry into the experiences of those who suffered and survived their time there.
The request has also been made on behalf of two former Deepcut recruits who allege they were assaulted.
Cheryl's father Des James, who has campaigned for a public inquiry for several years, said there needs to be a thorough and independent investigation into the large number of allegations made by servicemen and women about their treatment at Deepcut between 1993 and 2002, the sexualised culture at the barracks, the toxic environment there and deficiencies in current legislation covering the Armed Forces.
Delivering his verdict in the inquest into the death of Cheryl James earlier this month, Judge Brian Barker QC severely criticised many aspects of life at Deepcut in the mid-1990s.
The coroner emphasised that his inquest was not a public inquiry and that he could not investigate the physical and sexual violence individual recruits claimed to have experienced.
Mr James said: "The inquest was unable to hear many of the testaments of the toxic and evil culture at Deepcut and I understand that.
"The MoD has wasted many years avoiding a public inquiry into Deepcut and even denying that an abusive culture existed until very recently.
"A public inquiry could reassure parents of future recruits, and would listen to and offer comfort to those recruits whose young lives have been so dreadfully affected. I have met many of those recruits who are still suffering today.
"No-one can deny that the torch has not yet been shone into the dark corners of what happened at Deepcut and it feels so unjust that the recruits have not been allowed to speak."
Mr James said: "A public inquiry may finally draw a line under this dark stain on the reputation of the British Army."
He said both the current and a former Chief of Staff of the Army had said they would welcome a public inquiry.
