THE mother of a Royal Artillery Gunner who took her own life challenged Sir Keir Starmer to prevent the army investigating itself after an inquest today found harassment by her line manager contributed to her death.

A coroner ruled that the army’s failure to take appropriate action after Jaysley Beck was harassed “more than minimally” contributed to her death aged 19 at Larkhill Camp, Wiltshire, on December 15 2021.

Speaking after the inquest’s conclusion, Ms Beck’s mother, Leighann McCready, said: “Jaysley was so much more than a soldier — she was our daughter, a sister to Emily and a friend to so many.

“The army cannot be allowed to investigate itself any more when it comes to cases of sexual harassment, assault, bullying and abuse.

“Too often, servicewomen and men don’t feel able to speak up out of fear of being victimised — and even when they do, the army is left to investigate itself.

“This cannot continue. There needs to be an independent body responsible for investigating those more serious cases, which is completely separate from the army — only then can we ensure true accountability, real justice and genuine change.

“Jaysley should still be here. We won’t stop fighting until meaningful action is taken.”

Coroner Nicholas Rheinberg said there is an “arguable case” for saying the state breached her Article 2 right to life, after ruling that superior officers failed to take action over a “barrage” of messages sent by her manager Ryan Mason.

He added that “on the balance of probabilities” she had been sexually assaulted by another senior colleague, Warrant Officer Michael Webber, and that the army also failed to fully investigate him.

Brigadier Melissa Emmett, head of the army personnel services group, apologised at the inquest to Gunner Beck’s family and said the force formally accepted its failures.