Armed forces chiefs have been urged to move more black or Asian recruits up to senior ranks.
New figures show no ethnic minority member has been promoted to colonel or above in the Army, captain in the Navy or group captain in the RAF for more than five years.
And fewer than five out of 1,560 serving in those roles or above are from black or Asian backgrounds.
The Ministry of Defence has also admitted all of the forces’ 120 female senior officers are white.
Last night former Army captain Ben Obese-Jecty, an Iraq and Afghanistan veteran, said nothing would change until the forces stamped out racism in the ranks and raised awareness among ethnic minorities of the careers available in the military.
Ben, who served nine years until 2012, said it could take decades to fix. “I don’t recall coming across any black senior officers in my time,” he said.
“The lack of black and Asian officers in senior ranks is indicative of the failure to recruit over two decades.
“The armed forces has tried to address this with recent campaigns but it could take a generation to produce officers on track to promote to senior ranks.
“There are many factors why young people from ethnic minorities may not consider a career as a commissioned officer. For some, it’s likely to be fears of racism but I think a lack of awareness is a broader factor.”
Ethnic minorities currently make up around 10% of forces personnel.
The failure to promote them comes despite repeated pledges by ministers and service chiefs to ensure the forces represent the entire British population.
Chief of the Defence Staff, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, also recently pledged to take action after describing the armed forces’ failure to reflect the country’s ethnic mix as “woeful”.
An MoD spokesman said: “We work hard to broaden the diversity of our armed forces to better reflect the society we serve. We implement frequent reviews of policy and process to create an inclusive work environment.”
