There is no reason to ban all initiation rituals for new recruits to the Dutch military because they are important in generating team spirit, junior defence minister Barbara Visser told MPs on Thursday.

Socialist and Labour MPs had called for an end to the use of initiation rituals following allegations about new recruits being bullied, assaulted and raped by senior officers.

Three soldiers told the Volkskrant at the end of last year that they had quit their barracks in Schaarsbergen in 2014 because of the climate of abuse. Four members of staff were disciplined and transferred to other units following an investigation.

A preliminary external investigation into the claims has criticised officials for not taking sufficient action to deal with the reports.

Visser told MPs that initiation rituals in which recruits are humiliated and bullied are banned by the army and that current rituals are in line with regulations, broadcaster RTL Nieuws reported.