RAF diversity: Senior female recruitment officer resigns over targets

A senior female RAF recruitment officer has resigned amid claims of pressure to meet diversity targets.

The unnamed Group Captain is reported to have voiced frustration that white men were rejected in a bid to recruit more ethnic minorities and women.

The Royal Air Force aims to hit targets of 20% for minority ethnicity and 40% for women among new recruits by 2030.

The force insisted recruitment had not been paused and it was working to recruit more under-represented people.

Britain's armed forces have made no secret they want to attract more women, black and Asian recruits.

The head of Britain's armed forces, Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, has described their under-representation as woeful.

But the RAF has gone the furthest, setting ambitious targets to more than double its recruitment of women to hit 40% by 2030, as well as to ensure ethnic minorities make up 20% of new recruits.

First reported by Sky News, pressure to meet those targets was felt by a head of recruitment - who has now resigned and moved to another role.

Defence sources suggested she was being leant on to turn away white male candidates.

In a statement, the RAF insisted recruitment had not been paused, but it said it was doing everything it could to increase recruitment of under-represented groups.

A spokesperson said the force would not shy away from the challenges it faced to attract candidates from every part of the UK workforce.

The Ministry of Defence said operational effectiveness was essential and insisted the RAF, like the rest of the armed forces, was determined to reflect the "society it serves to protect".

Earlier this year a leaked internal email appealed for a pilot to attend the premier of the movie Top Gun: Maverick as the face of the RAF - it was looking for someone who was "preferably not white and male".

The reality is the vast majority are.