DEMANDS for a public inquiry into the mysterious deaths of young soldiers intensified last night as grieving families accused the Armed Forces of a "culture of secrecy".

The campaign for an official investigation into the shootings of four Army recruits at Deepcut barracks, in Surrey, was widened as more families, including several from the North-East, came forward to demand answers over loved ones who have died in the services.

Yesterday, they took their campaign to Westminster where 116 MPs have signed a Commons motion backing the calls for a public inquiry into Deepcut and other deaths.

At a news conference in London, the parents of 17- year-old Private Geoff Gray, originally from Seaham, County Durham, and three other soldiers who were found shot at Deepcut, said documents had been destroyed and conflicting statements made as part of a prolonged campaign to withhold the truth.

The families said they would not stop until a public inquiry was held and would seek other legal means, including a judicial review, to find the answers to their questions.

Surrey Police are investigating the deaths of Pte Gray who died last year, James Collinson, of Perth, Scotland, who died last month, Cheryl James, of North Wales, and Sean Benton of Hastings, East Sussex, who both died in 1995.

The Army has been accused of a cover-up by the Deepcut families, who refuse to accept that the soldiers committed suicide with their own rifles

They said they had come up against a "culture of secrecy" from within the Armed Forces and Ministry of Defence, preventing them from finding out the truth.

Pte Gray's father, also called Geoff, said: "We started off trying to find out how our son was killed. Then we found that there were three other families at Deepcut who have been affected in a similar way.

"Now we realise it's not just a Deepcut problem, it's a British Army problem."

The families yesterday demanded legislation for any deaths at barracks to be referred to the police.

But the MoD said that all deaths at military barracks are referred immediately to the police.

The families also criticised the latest police investigation into the Deepcut deaths being conducted by a force which was in charge of the original inquiry.

John Cooper, a barrister representing the families, said that the culture of bullying also needed addressing.

"How ever these young people lost their lives - whether it be through foul play or in certain circumstances through suicide - none of it is acceptable," he said.

There have been almost 1,800 "non natural" fatalities on Army bases over the past 12 years - 188 of them shooting deaths.

Private Dale Little, 19, was killed by a single gunshot wound to the head while on tour in Bosnia in July 1995.

His parents, Jim and Barbra, were at yesterday's news conference where his father said: "My message to the Ministry of Defence is to get their fingers out and give us a public inquiry into the deaths of our children."

Fusilier Gary Riches, from Benwell, Newcastle, was found dead from gunshot wounds at his base in Bosnia in 1995.

His brother Scott, who was also at the conference, said: "The Army have got away with it for so long, but people are now standing up and they are not going to tolerate it."

The MoD is carrying out a review of how young recruits are treated, putting bullying under intense scrutiny.

The MoD said: "We have nothing to cover up and nothing to hide. It would be foolish to say that bullying and harassment doesn't happen 100 per cent. However, the army has a zero-tolerance attitude to it."