The head of the government’s main ethics watchdog has stepped back from the role after it emerged that he was investigated in an earlier position over alleged sexual misconduct involving female colleagues, and that one case had resulted in a sanction.
Stuart Sterling was appointed the first chief executive of the newly formed Ethics and Integrity Commission in October 2025.
The allegations against Mr Sterling and the investigations into them were first reported by The Sunday Times.
In response, a government spokesperson said the allegations were serious and that Mr Sterling had stepped back from his role while the government swiftly established the facts.
The Labour Party had promised in its 2024 manifesto to create the commission to ensure probity in government in response to scandals during the Covid pandemic.
As head of the commission, Mr Sterling’s role included advising the prime minister on tackling misconduct in public life.
The Sunday Times reported that Mr Sterling had been subject to a full misconduct hearing when he was a junior officer with Northamptonshire Police. The case was treated as one of sexual harassment.
The paper said Mr Sterling was accused of inappropriately touching a female colleague’s breast in a police station, and that a male colleague who witnessed the event reported him to his superiors. It reported that Mr Sterling was suspended on full pay.
A representative for Mr Sterling said that a full disciplinary process had been held regarding the complaint in 2002, that he had complied fully with it, and that it resulted in a sanction.
The Sunday Times reported that Mr Sterling received a financial penalty of two weeks’ pay. It said that at the time this was the maximum sanction possible short of forced resignation. He then received two police commendations and was promoted to detective sergeant.
The Sunday Times said that by 2008 Mr Sterling had been reported to the force again after another allegation of sexual misconduct against a female colleague, this time at a social gathering outside work.
Mr Sterling’s representative said he denied that the alleged incident in 2008 took place. He said Mr Sterling had never been subject to a criminal investigation, but the allegation had been examined by professional standards.
The representative added that Mr Sterling had not been required to resign from the force and had left voluntarily.
Northamptonshire Police confirmed that it held a digital record of the misconduct process from 2002.
It did not comment on the later allegation.
In 2009, Mr Sterling joined the Cabinet Office. It was not clear what vetting process he underwent. He has since served in a variety of senior roles and in 2019 was seconded to the National Police Chiefs’ Council. In 2023, he received an OBE for helping to plan the funeral of Queen Elizabeth.
It was understood that the Cabinet Office would now examine whether appropriate and correct disclosures of information were made.
