A senior whistleblower has raised concerns that a restructuring at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) at Porton Down is damaging morale and disrupting vital research that supports national security. The insider told the Guardian that the changes have left the organisation in a 'paralysing limbo', with hundreds of jobs being 'deleted' and staff required to reapply for positions.
The whistleblower said the shake-up has affected morale and productivity, potentially jeopardising safety. DSTL, an arm's-length body of the Ministry of Defence, employs around 4,800 staff and is responsible for cutting-edge science and technology aiding the military and national security, including work on the Salisbury poisoning and countering the Covid pandemic.
Internal staff surveys show DSTL's 'engagement index' at a historic low of 43%, compared with 57% for the National Armaments Director group and 64% for the civil service overall. A Health and Safety Executive survey placed DSTL in the bottom 1% of benchmarked organisations for staff feeling they had the 'resources to work safely'.
The whistleblower said: 'They are treating us like a bunch of replaceable people in grey suits when we are a diverse team of world-leading science experts passionate about keeping our country safe. The losses will take a decade to recover from.' They added that the organisation has been 'looking at its own navel' for nine months, distracting from real science.
The Ministry of Defence did not dispute that morale has been affected but stressed there have been no redundancies. A spokesperson said DSTL is on track to meet key requirements this year, including delivering the DragonFire laser trial and the biggest UK AI and autonomous systems trials. They added that 'our people remain the bedrock of DSTL and their dedication has ensured that our performance this year is better than last year.'
