The former head of the Royal Navy, Ben Key, has been sacked and stripped of his commission after it was discovered that the married admiral had been having an affair with a female subordinate.
Sir Ben, 59, was due to retire from his position this summer, after serving as the head of the Royal Navy since 2021.
According to Agency reports indicated that Sir Ben had been having an affair with a more junior female colleague.
Such relationships are frowned upon and seen as a potential abuse of power and contrary to the military service code of conduct.
The Ministry of Defence said Key’s behaviour had been found to have fallen far short of the standards expected, after an investigation triggered when the woman’s husband made a complaint.
The head of the armed forces and Key’s immediate boss, Admiral Tony Radakin, said: “We expect the highest standards of behaviour from our service personnel and our civil servants.
“We investigate all allegations of inappropriate behaviour and will take robust action against anyone found to have fallen short of our standards, regardless of their seniority.”
According to Key in a statement regretted his behaviour, which, he said, had fallen short of standards. “I deeply regret my conduct in the spring of last year, which fell well below the standard I set for myself and that which I set for the Royal Navy,” he said.
The former admiral said he fully accepted the decision, made by the defence council, to terminate his service and his commission. “I am very sorry to those I have hurt personally, and I apologise to everyone who serves with the Royal Navy,” he said.
Key, 59, had been forced to step down from all duties in May while the complaint was investigated.
The case had caused considerable unease in the Royal Navy, not least because Key said recently he was determined to root out sexual misconduct in a service that has been hit by a string of scandals.
“We are absolutely determined to create a Royal Navy in which people are judged for their professional conduct,” he told the defence select committee in March. “Behaviours that run counter to that will not be accepted, and particularly those around unwelcome sexual behaviours.”
Key had also offered an apology for the “intolerable misogyny suffered by women in the submarine service, after a series of investigations had exposed sexual harassment, bullying and assault.
He said last October that he was “truly sorry” to women who had experienced “misogyny, bullying and other unacceptable behaviours” while serving their country. “We must be better than this and do better than we have,” he said.
Sir Ben joined the navy as a university cadet in 1984 where he later qualified as both helicopter aircrew and as a principal warfare officer. As a junior officer he saw service around the world in a variety of frigates and destroyers.
He was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in 2016 and a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the 2021 New Years Honours List.
He was appointed to first sea lord in November 2021 and is succeeded by Gen Sir Gwyn Jenkins of the Royal Marines.
About The Author
