105-688: MI5 ( Military Intelligence, Section 5 ), officially the Security Service , is the United Kingdom's domestic counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), and Defence Intelligence (DI). MI5 is directed by the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC), and
210-655: A Bloomberg report. In October 2020, Rangzieb Ahmed brought a civil claim against MI5, alleging that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency had arrested him in 2006, and that MI5 had colluded in torture by submitting questions which were put to him under torture in Pakistan. This claim was rejected by the High Court on 16 December 2020. MI5 was based at Watergate House in the Strand from 1912 until 1916, when it moved to larger facilities at 16 Charles Street for
315-493: A British citizen or Crown servant, which would be an offence under any provision of the Act other than sections 8(1) or 8(4) or 8(5) if done by him in the United Kingdom, is an offence under that provision. This is intended to cover espionage (where someone travels to a foreign country and discloses secret information to a foreign power) and cases where someone travels to a foreign country and discloses secret information, perhaps to
420-509: A student radical . One of the most significant and far-reaching failures was an inability to conclusively detect and apprehend the ' Cambridge Five ' spy ring, which had formed in the inter-war years, and achieved great success in penetrating the government, and the intelligence agencies themselves. Related to this failure were suggestions of a high-level penetration within the service, Peter Wright (especially in his controversial book Spycatcher ) and others believing that evidence implicated
525-678: A British spy and murdered him in March 1920. The intelligence staff of Michael Collins Irish Republican Army penetrated the unit. Using DMP detectives Ned Broy and David Nelligan , Michael Collins was able to learn the names and lodgings of the M04(x) agents, referred to by IRA operatives as 'The Cairo Gang'. On Bloody Sunday in 1920, Collins ordered his counter-intelligence unit, The Squad , to assassinate 25 M04(x) agents, several British courts-martial officers, at least one agent reporting to Basil Thomson, and several intelligence officers attached to
630-447: A State other than the United Kingdom or an international organisation. This section applies only to crown servants and government contractors. This section relates to disclosure of information which would assist a criminal or the commission of a crime. This section applies only to crown servants and government contractors. This section relates to further disclosure of information, documents or other articles protected from disclosure by
735-584: A newspaper. Section 15(1)(b) provides that any act done by any person in any of the Channel Islands , or in the Isle of Man , or in any colony, which would be an offence under any provision of the Act other than sections 8(1) or 8(4) or 8(5) if done by him in the United Kingdom, is an offence under that provision. Section 15(3) confers a power on The King to extend, by Order in Council , any provision of
840-657: A purely advisory body, something that sharply limited its influence. The Branch was transferred to the Adjutant General's Department in 1888 and Brackenbury's title was changed to Director of Military Intelligence. After Wolseley's appointment as Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in 1895, he made the Director of Military Intelligence directly responsible to him. At the outbreak of the Second Boer War in 1899
945-682: A small staff, and working in conjunction with the Special Branch of the Metropolitan Police , the service was responsible for overall direction and the identification of foreign agents, while Special Branch provided the manpower for the investigation of their affairs, arrest and interrogation. On the day after the declaration of the First World War, the Home Secretary, Reginald McKenna , announced that "within
1050-490: A term not exceeding two years, or to a fine, or to both, or, on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum , or to both. The words "51 weeks" are prospectively substituted for the words "three months" in section 10(2) by paragraph 39 of Schedule 26 to the Criminal Justice Act 2003 . Section 11(1) inserted section 24(2)(bb) into
1155-657: A total of 175 agents of the DDSB, Collins's operation only temporarily slowed British momentum. Within days, the remaining 160-odd M04(x) agents were re-established in secure quarters inside solidly loyalist hotels in Dublin, from where they continued to pursue Collins and the IRA relentlessly right up until the truce of July 1921. In December 1920, the entire DDSB was transferred from British Army command to civil command under Deputy Police Commissioner General Ormonde Winter, and thereafter
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#17327940331161260-760: A £100 weekly wage. MI5's efficiency in counter-espionage declined from the 1930s. It was to some extent a victim of its own success as it was unable to break the ways of thinking it had evolved in the 1910s and 1920s. In particular, it was unable to adjust to the new methods of the Soviet intelligence services, the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (NKVD) and Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU). It continued to think in terms of agents who would attempt to gather information simply through observation or bribery, or to agitate within labour organisations and
1365-616: Is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that repeals and replaces section 2 of the Official Secrets Act 1911 , thereby removing the public interest defence created by that section. Lord Bingham of Cornhill said that the white paper "Reform of Section 2 of the Official Secrets Act 1911" (Cm. 408) (June 1988) was the immediate precursor of this Act and that its recommendations bear directly on
1470-807: Is derived from the Secret Service Bureau, founded in 1909. At the start of the First World War , it was responsible for the arrest of enemy spies, or suspected enemy spies. Throughout the First World War, Germany continually attempted to infiltrate Britain, but MI5 was able to identify most, if not all, of the agents dispatched. During the Second World War , it developed the Double-Cross System . This involved attempting to 'turn' captured agents wherever possible, and use them to mislead enemy intelligence agencies. After
1575-759: Is directed for intelligence operational priorities by the Joint Intelligence Committee. It liaises with SIS, GCHQ, DI , and a number of other bodies within the British government, and industrial base. It is overseen by the Intelligence and Security Committee of Members of Parliament, who are directly appointed by the Prime Minister , and by the Investigatory Powers Commissioner . Judicial oversight of
1680-572: Is made with lawful authority if, and only if, the conditions specified therein are satisfied. Section 7(4) provides a defence. Sections 7(5) and (6) define the expressions "official authorisation" and "official restriction". This section makes it a crime for a crown servant or government contractor to retain information beyond their official need for it, and obliges them to properly protect secret information from accidental disclosure. Section 9(2) provides that no prosecution for an offence, in respect of any such information, document or other article as
1785-576: Is mentioned in section 4(2), may be instituted, in England and Wales, except by or with the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions , or in Northern Ireland, except by or with the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland . Section 9(1) provides that no prosecution for any other offence under this Act may be instituted, in England and Wales, except by or with
1890-577: Is or has been a member of the security and intelligence services , or who is or has been a person notified that he is subject to the provisions of section 1(1). Cases under this section: Section 2(1) creates an offence of disclosing information, documents or other articles relating to defence. This section applies only to Crown servants and government contractors . Section 3(1)(a) creates an offence of disclosing information, documents or other articles relating to international relations. This includes confidential information, documents or other article from
1995-733: Is predominant. While the names remain, the agencies are now responsible to different departments of state, MI5 to the Home Office , and MI6 the Foreign Office . Directors of Military Intelligence have been: Deputy Quartermaster General, Intelligence Branch Director of Military Intelligence Director General of Mobilisation and Military Intelligence Director of Military Operations Director of Military Intelligence Director of Military Operations and Intelligence Director of Military Intelligence Official Secrets Act 1989 The Official Secrets Act 1989 (c. 6)
2100-614: Is similar. Offences under any provision of the Act, other than sections 8(1) or 8(4) or 8(5), committed by any person in the United Kingdom , the Isle of Man , the Channel Islands , or in any colony, or committed by British citizens or Crown servants in any place, are cognisable as offences under the law of the United Kingdom. In England and Wales , offences under any provision of this Act other than sections 8(1) or 8(4) or 8(5) were formerly classified as arrestable offences , initially by virtue of sections 24(1)(c) and (2)(bb) of
2205-577: Is the most intrusive power a state can wield. Theresa May must publish this guidance without delay". In November 2019, four human rights organisations claimed that the UK government has a policy dating from the 1990s to allow MI5 officers to authorise agents or informers to participate in crime, and to immunise them against prosecution for criminal actions. The organisations said the policy allowed MI5 officers to authorise agents and informers to participate in criminal activities that protected national security or
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#17327940331162310-548: The Civil Service , who is directly supported by an internal security organisation, secretariat, legal advisory branch, and information services branch. The Deputy Director General is responsible for the operational activity of the service, being responsible for four branches; international counter-terrorism, National Security Advice Centre (counter proliferation and counter espionage), Irish and domestic counter-terrorism, and technical and surveillance operations. The service
2415-1155: The Esher Report in 1904 the War Office was dramatically reorganized. The post of Commander-in-Chief was abolished and replaced by the Chief of the General Staff . Planning and intelligence would be the responsibility of the Directorate of Military Operations. When the War Office was subsumed into the Ministry of Defence (MoD) in 1964, the DMI was absorbed into the Defence Intelligence Staff . During World War I , British secret services were divided into numbered sections named Military Intelligence , department number x , abbreviated to MIx , such as MI1 for information management. The branch, department, section, and sub-section numbers varied through
2520-700: The Freedom of Information Act 2000 . The Security Service Act of 1989 establishes several legal key mechanisms aimed at ensuring the accountability and control of the Service. Certain provisions from this act were later integrated into the Intelligence Services Act of 1994 with European Commission on Human Rights later having endorsed these mechanisms in multiple applications under the European Convention on Human Rights. Additionally,
2625-526: The Michael Bettaney case, Philip Woodfield was appointed as a staff counsellor for the security and intelligence services. His role was to be available to be consulted by any member or former member of the security and intelligence services who had "anxieties relating to the work of his or her service" that it had not been possible to allay through the ordinary processes of management-staff relations, including proposals for publications. The service
2730-625: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO). The service has offices across the United Kingdom, including a HQ in Northern Ireland . Details of a northern operations centre in Greater Manchester were revealed by the firm who built it. Although the Service is commonly referred to as 'MI5', this was its official name for only thirteen years (1916–1929). However, it is still used as a sub-title on the various pages of
2835-685: The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), that had been devolved in 1976 to the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) during Ulsterisation . During April 2010, the Real IRA detonated a 120 lb car bomb outside Palace Barracks in County Down , which is the headquarters of MI5 in Northern Ireland and also home to the 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment . MI5 is understood to have a close working relationship with
2940-536: The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 , and then by virtue of sections 24(1)(c) and (2) of, and paragraph 18 of Schedule 1A to, that Act. The offences under sections 8(1), (4) and (5) are triable only summarily ; the others are triable either way . Sections 7(5), 8(9), 12 and 13(1) confer powers on the Secretary of State to "prescribe" bodies and persons for certain purposes. These powers have been exercised by
3045-516: The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 . It also omitted the reference to the Official Secrets Act 1911 in section 24(2)(b) of that Act. It was repealed on 1 October 2002. The repeal was consequential on the replacement of section 24(2) of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 with a new Schedule 1A to that Act. Section 11(3) extends section 9(1) of the Official Secrets Act 1911 (which relates to search warrants ). Section 12(1) defines
3150-583: The Republic of Ireland 's Special Detective Unit (SDU), the counter-terrorism and counter-intelligence section of the Garda Síochána (national police), particularly with regards to threats from dissident republican terrorism and Islamic terrorism . Executive liaison groups enable MI5 to safely share secret, sensitive, and often raw intelligence with the police, on which decisions can be made about how best to gather evidence and prosecute suspects in
3255-549: The Royal Irish Constabulary Auxiliary Division , at their lodgings throughout Dublin. Although the shooting of 14 British officers had the desired effect on British morale, in many ways Bloody Sunday was a botched job. Three of Collins's men were apprehended after engaging in a shoot-out on the street, and at least two of the wounded British officers had no connection whatsoever to British intelligence. Moreover, with MO4(x) having fielded
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3360-676: The Act, subject to any exceptions, adaptations or modifications specified in the Order, to any of the Channel Islands, or to the Isle of Man, or to any colony. This power was exercised by the Official Secrets Act 1989 (Hong Kong) Order 1992 (S.I. 1992/1301). This part is repealed by the Official Secrets Ordinance in 1997. Section 16(1) authorises the citation of this Act by a short title . Section 16(2) authorises
3465-635: The Americans had to understand that the UK did not condone such mistreatment, and that a complaint should be made to a senior US official if there was any coercion by the US in conjunction with an MI6 interview. The end of the Cold War resulted in a change in emphasis for the operations of the service, assuming responsibility for the investigation of all Irish republican activity within Britain, and increasing
3570-666: The Committee that, in its view, the proposed Bill should remove the common law defence of duress of circumstance in order to address unauthorised disclosure by members, or former members, of the intelligence and security Agencies. The Bill should also put an element of the associated "authorisation to disclose" procedure onto a statutory footing and increase penalties. This proposal has yet to receive policy clearance across Whitehall. Section 1(1) creates an offence of disclosing information, documents or other articles relating to security or intelligence. It can be committed by any person who
3675-639: The Department of Military Intelligence (DMI), for the Army's so-called "Silent Section", otherwise known as M04(x). Quickly trained by MI5 veterans at Hounslow Barracks , outside London, these freshly-minted M04(x) Army case-officers were deployed to Dublin beginning in the spring of 1919. Over time, 175 officers were trained and dispatched to Ireland. In Ireland, they came under the command of General Cecil Romer and his Deputy, Lieutenant Colonel Stephen Searle Hill-Dillon. In April 1919, Colonel Walter Wilson of
3780-688: The Department of Military Intelligence arrived in Dublin to take over the day-to-day management of these 175 Army intelligence-officers, and the unit was designated as the "Dublin District Special Branch" (DMI/MO4(x)/DDSB), because it operated exclusively within the confines of the Army's Dublin Military District. Royal Marine Colonel Hugh Montgomery of the Department of Naval Intelligence, was also seconded to Romer's intelligence staff at this time. British Army after-action reports and contemporary accounts indicate that M04(x)/DDSB
3885-555: The Director General. The service was subsequently placed on a statutory basis in 1989 with the introduction of the Security Service Act. This was the first government acknowledgement of the existence of the service. The post-war period was a difficult time for the service, with a significant change in the threat as the Cold War began, being challenged by an extremely active KGB , and increasing incidence of
3990-609: The Directorate underwent a number of organisational changes, absorbing and shedding sections over time. The first instance of an organisation which would later become the DMI was the Department of Topography & Statistics, formed by Major Thomas Best Jervis, late of the Bombay Engineer Corps , in 1854 in the early stages of the Crimean War . In 1873 the Intelligence Branch was created within
4095-582: The First World War, Germany continually attempted to infiltrate Britain, but MI5 was able to identify most, if not all, of the agents dispatched. MI5 used a method that depended on strict control of entry and exit to the country and, crucially, large-scale inspection of mail. In post-war years, attention turned to attempts by the Soviet Union and the Comintern to surreptitiously support revolutionary activities within Britain. MI5's expertise, combined with
4200-414: The First World War, MI5 was a fully-fledged investigating force (although it never had powers of arrest), in addition to being a counter-espionage agency. The expansion of this role continued after a brief post-war power struggle with the head of the Special Branch , Sir Basil Thomson . After the First World War, budget-conscious politicians regarded Kell's department as unnecessary. In 1919, MI5's budget
4305-710: The German secret service, the Abwehr . This necessitated a large-scale organisational effort, since the information had to appear valuable but actually be misleading. A high-level committee, the Wireless Board, was formed to provide this information. The day-to-day operation was delegated to a sub-committee, the Twenty Committee (so called because the Roman numerals for twenty, XX, form a double cross). The system
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4410-665: The Germans a false impression of the location and timings of the landings (see Operation Fortitude ). While the double-cross work dealt with enemy agents sent into Britain, a smaller-scale operation run by Victor Rothschild targeted British citizens who wanted to help Germany. The ' Fifth Column ' operation saw an MI5 officer, Eric Roberts , masquerade as the Gestapo's man in London, encouraging Nazi sympathisers to pass him information about people who would be willing to help Germany in
4515-410: The Intelligence Branch had 13 officers. Prior to the war it produced a highly accurate summary of the Boer republics' military potential and was the only part of the War Office to escape criticism in the resulting Royal Commission. In the immediate aftermath of the Boer War the Intelligence Branch was enlarged and its head elevated to Director General of Mobilisation and Military Intelligence. Following
4620-403: The Investigatory Powers Commission (IPC) it introduces. In July 2006, parliamentarian Norman Baker accused the British Government of "hoarding information about people who pose no danger to this country", after it emerged that MI5 holds secret files on 272,000 individuals, equivalent to one in 160 adults. It had previously been revealed that a ' traffic light ' system operates: In March 2018,
4725-406: The MI5 officers, Sidney Henry Noakes of the Intelligence Corps , was subsequently given permission to keep Himmler's braces and the forged identity document that had led to his arrest. The Prime Minister's personal responsibility for the service was delegated to the Home Secretary David Maxwell-Fyfe in 1952, with a directive issued by the Home Secretary setting out the role and objectives of
4830-410: The NKVD with sensitive information. The most successful of these agents; Harold 'Kim' Philby , Donald Maclean , Guy Burgess , Anthony Blunt , and John Cairncross ; went undetected until after the Second World War , and became known as the Cambridge Five . One of the earliest actions of Winston Churchill on coming to power in early 1940 was to sack the agency's long-term head, Vernon Kell . He
4935-434: The Northern Ireland conflict, and international terrorism . Whilst little has yet been released regarding the successes of the service, there have been a number of intelligence failures which have created embarrassment for both the service and the government. For instance, in 1983, one of its officers, Michael Bettaney , was caught trying to sell information to the KGB. He was subsequently convicted of espionage. Following
5040-412: The Quartermaster General's Department with an initial staff of seven officers. Initially the Intelligence Branch was solely concerned with collecting intelligence, but under the leadership of Henry Brackenbury , a protege of influential Adjutant-General Lord Wolseley , it was increasingly concerned with planning. However despite these steps towards a nascent general staff, the Intelligence Branch remained
5145-403: The Realm (2010), MI5 had no clearly defined role in the Anglo-Irish War of 1919–1921. To further worsen the situation, several of Kell's officers defected to Thomson's new agency, the Home Intelligence Directorate. MI5 therefore undertook no tangible intelligence operations of consequence during the Irish War of Independence . MI5 did undertake the training of British Army case-officers from
5250-466: The Second World War, MI5 was based at Leconfield House (1945–1976), and 140 Gower Street (1976–1994, since demolished), before returning to Thames House in 1994. The national headquarters at Thames House draws together personnel from a number of locations into a single HQ facility: Thames House also houses the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC), a subordinate organisation to the Security Service; prior to March 2013, Thames House additionally housed
5355-407: The Secret Service Bureau was to become the basis of the later Secret Intelligence Service, or MI6 .) The founding head of the Army section was Vernon Kell of the South Staffordshire Regiment , who remained in that role until the early part of the Second World War . Its role was originally quite restricted, as the section existed solely to ensure national security through counter-espionage. With
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#17327940331165460-441: The Security Service are recognised annually by King Charles III at the Prince of Wales's Intelligence Community Awards at St James's Palace or Clarence House alongside members of the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), and GCHQ . Awards and citations are given to teams within the agencies as well as individuals. The Security Service is derived from the Secret Service Bureau , founded in 1909, and concentrating originally on
5565-485: The Service is subject to oversight and accountability through various other means. These oversight mechanisms have evolved over time to meet changing governmental requirements, with the Service now being held accountable through a variety of oversight arrangements. All employees of the service are bound by the Official Secrets Act . In certain circumstances, officers handling agents or informers may authorise them to carry out activity which would otherwise be criminal within
5670-454: The US, MI5 started collecting bulk telephone communications data under a little understood general power of the Telecommunications Act 1984 (instead of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 which would have brought independent oversight and regulation). This was kept secret until announced by the Home Secretary in 2015. This power was replaced by the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 which introduced new surveillance powers overseen by
5775-506: The United Kingdom. The Security Service "is authorised to investigate any person or movement that might threaten the...security" of the United Kingdom. The current Director General is Ken McCallum , who succeeded Andrew Parker in April 2020. The service marked its centenary in 2009 by publishing an official history titled The Defence of the Realm: The Authorized History of MI5 , written by Christopher Andrew , Professor of Modern and Contemporary History at Cambridge University . Members of
5880-412: The activities of the Imperial German government, as a joint initiative of the Admiralty and the War Office . The Bureau was initially split into naval and army sections which, over time, specialised respectively in foreign target espionage and internal counter-espionage activities. The former specialisation was a result of a growing interest at the Admiralty, at the time, in intelligence regarding
5985-414: The agency. Both men claimed to journalist Liam Clarke in the Belfast Telegraph that they were abandoned by MI5 and were "left high and dry despite severe health problems as a result of their work and lavish promises of life-time care from their former Intelligence bosses". Both men suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Following the United States invasion of Afghanistan , on 9 January 2002,
6090-435: The armed services, while posing as ordinary citizens. The NKVD, meanwhile, had evolved more sophisticated methods; it began to recruit agents from within the upper classes (most notably from Cambridge University ), whom it regarded as a long-term investment. Such NKVD agents succeeded in gaining positions within the government, and, in Kim Philby's case, within British intelligence itself, from where they were able to provide
6195-418: The citation of this Act and the Official Secrets Acts 1911 to 1939 by a collective title. Section 16(5) provides that the repeals of parts of the Official Secrets Act 1911 and the Official Secrets Act 1920 in Schedule 2 do not extend to any of the territories mentioned in section 15(3), subject to any Order made under section 15(3). The said territories mentioned in section 15(3) are the Channel Islands ,
6300-432: The consent of the Attorney General , or in Northern Ireland, except by or with the consent of the Advocate General for Northern Ireland . The words "Advocate General for Northern Ireland", in section 9(1), were substituted for the words " Attorney General for Northern Ireland " by sections 28 and 87 of, and paragraph 32 of Schedule 7 to, the Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002 , on 12 April 2010. This section provides
6405-463: The courts. Each organisation works in partnership throughout the investigation, but MI5 retain the lead for collecting, assessing and exploiting intelligence. The police take lead responsibility for gathering evidence, obtaining arrests, and preventing risks to the public. In 1996, legislation formalised the extension of the Security Service's statutory remit to include supporting the law enforcement agencies in their work against serious crime. Tasking
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#17327940331166510-480: The early incompetence of the Soviets, meant the bureau was successful in correctly identifying and closely monitoring these activities. In the meantime, MI5's role had grown substantially. Due to the spy hysteria, MI5 had formed with far more resources than it actually needed to track down German spies. As is common within governmental bureaucracies, this caused the service to expand its role to use its spare resources. MI5 acquired many additional responsibilities during
6615-421: The economic well-being of the UK. The organisations took the UK government to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal , seeking to have it declare the policy illegal, and to issue an injunction against further 'unlawful conduct'. In December 2019, the tribunal dismissed the request of the human rights organisations in a 3-to-2 decision. The potential criminal activities include murder, kidnap, and torture, according to
6720-459: The effort countering other forms of terrorism, particularly in more recent years the more widespread threat of Islamic extremism . Whilst the British security forces in Northern Ireland have provided support in the countering of both republican and loyalist paramilitary groups since the early 1970s, republican sources have often accused these forces of collusion with loyalists. In 2006, an Irish government committee inquiry found that there
6825-424: The event of invasion. When his recruits began bringing in intelligence, he promised to pass that on to Berlin. The operation was deeply controversial within MI5, with opponents arguing that it amounted to entrapment. By the end of the war, Roberts had identified around 500 people. But MI5 decided not to prosecute, and instead covered the work up, even giving some of Roberts' recruits Nazi medals. They were never told
6930-444: The expression " Crown servant " for the purposes of this Act. Sections 12(2) and (3) define the expression " government contractor " for the purposes of this Act. This section defines the words and expressions "disclose", "disclosure", "international organisation", "prescribed" and "State" for the purposes of the Act. This section provides the procedure for making orders under the Act. Section 15(1)(a) provides that any act done by
7035-469: The first MI5 staff arrived at Bagram . On 12 January 2002, following a report by an MI6 officer that a detainee appeared to have been mistreated before, an MI6 officer was sent instructions that were copied to all MI5 and MI6 staff in Afghanistan about how to deal with concerns over mistreatment, referring to signs of abuse: 'Given that they are not within our custody or control, the law does not require you to intervene to protect this'. It went on to say that
7140-492: The first time and declassified some information, "such as the number of its employees and its organizational structure." There have been strong accusations levelled against MI5 for having failed in its obligation to provide care for former police agents who had infiltrated the Provisional IRA during the Troubles . The two most notable of the agents, Martin McGartland and Raymond Gilmour , went on to reside in England using false identities, and in 2012, launched test cases against
7245-401: The fleet of the Imperial German Navy . This division was formalised, as separate home and foreign sections, prior to the beginning of the First World War . Following a number of administrative changes, the home section became known as Directorate of Military Intelligence , Section 5 and the abbreviation MI5, the name by which it is still known in popular culture. (The foreign/naval section of
7350-399: The following instruments: The Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) annual report for 2005–2006 on UK intelligence services states: Official Secrets Act 113. The Home Office has bid for a legislative slot in the next session to amend the Official Secrets Act 1989. (At the time of publication it was still awaiting confirmation of its place in the timetable.) The Home Office has informed
7455-432: The former Director General, Roger Hollis , or his deputy Graham Mitchell . The Trend inquiry of 1974 found the case unproven of that accusation, and that view was later supported by the former KGB officer Oleg Gordievsky . Another spy ring, the Portland spy ring , exposed after a tip-off by Soviet defector Michael Goleniewski , led to an extensive MI5 surveillance operation. In 1991, MI5 revealed its head publicly for
7560-486: The government acknowledged that MI5 officers are allowed to authorise agents to commit criminal activity in the UK. Maya Foa, the director of Reprieve , said: "After a seven-month legal battle, the prime minister has finally been forced to publish her secret order, but we are a long way from having transparency. The public and parliament are still being denied the guidance that says when British spies can commit criminal offences, and how far they can go. Authorised criminality
7665-416: The government inspector-general for civil-service affairs, conducted a thorough review of the operations and expenditures of Basil Thomson's Home Intelligence Directorate. He issued a scathing report, accusing Thomson of wasting both money and resources, and conducting redundant as well as ineffectual operations. Shortly thereafter, in a private meeting with Prime Minister David Lloyd George , Sir Basil Thomson
7770-624: The internment policy was gradually reversed. This eased pressure on MI5, and allowed it to concentrate on its major wartime success, the so-called 'double-cross' system . This was a system based on an internal memo drafted by an MI5 officer in 1936, which criticised the long-standing policy of arresting and sending to trial all enemy agents discovered by MI5. Several had offered to defect to Britain when captured; before 1939, such requests were invariably turned down. The memo advocated attempting to 'turn' captured agents wherever possible, and use them to mislead enemy intelligence agencies. This suggestion
7875-426: The interpretation of this Act. The offences under sections 1(3), 2(1), 3(1) and 4(1) can be committed only by persons who are or have been, and the offence under section 8(1) can be committed only by persons who are, Crown servants or government contractors. The offences under the Act, that can be committed only by persons who, as the case may be, are or have been Crown servants, government contractors, or members of
7980-532: The last twenty-four hours no fewer than twenty-one spies, or suspected spies, have been arrested in various places all over the country, chiefly in important military or naval centres, some of them long known to the authorities to be spies". These arrests have provoked recent historical controversy. According to the official history of MI5, the actual number of agents identified was 22, and Kell had started sending out letters to local police forces on 29 July, giving them advance warning of arrests to be made as soon as war
8085-409: The life of the department; examples include: Two MI section-names remain in common use, MI5 and MI6, in most part due to their use in spy fiction and the news media. " MI5 " is used as the short form name of the Security Service , and is included in the agency's logo and web address . MI6 is included as an alias on the Secret Intelligence Service website, though the official abbreviation, SIS,
8190-491: The majority came from MI5 sources, with an assessment in 1985 finding 85% came from MI5. Prime Minister David Cameron accepted the findings, and apologised on behalf of the British government, and acknowledged significant levels of collusion with Loyalists in its state agencies. On 10 October 2007, the lead responsibility for national security intelligence in Northern Ireland returned to the Security Service from
8295-531: The more widespread threat of Islamic extremism . In 1996, legislation formalised the extension of the Security Service's statutory remit to include supporting the law enforcement agencies in their work against serious crime. The Security Service comes under the authority of the Home Secretary within the Cabinet . The service is headed by a Director General (DG) at the grade of a Permanent Secretary of
8400-486: The official Security Service website, as well as in their web address ( https://www.MI5.gov.uk ). MI5 has previously used Government Communications Planning Directorate (GCPD) as a cover name when sponsoring research related to drone usage in charging recording devices. MI numbers The Directorate of Military Intelligence ( DMI ) was a department of the British War Office . Over its lifetime
8505-453: The penalties and mode of trial for offences under the Act. Section 10(2) provides that a person guilty of an offence under section 8(1) or 8(4) or 8(5) is liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months, or to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale , or to both. Section 10(1) provides that a person guilty of any other offence under the Act is liable, on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for
8610-403: The preceding sections of the Act. It allows, for example, the prosecution of newspapers or journalists who publish secret information leaked to them by a crown servant in contravention of section 3. This section applies to everyone. Section 6 creates an offence of making a "damaging disclosure" which "relates to security or intelligence, defence or international relations" where that information
8715-517: The products of his research into recently opened files. Hiley was sent an advance copy of the official history, and objected to the retelling of the story. He later wrote another article, 'Re-entering the Lists', which asserted that the list of those arrested published in the official history was concocted from later case histories. MI5 proved consistently successful throughout the rest of the 1910s and 1920s in its core counter-espionage role. Throughout
8820-489: The remaining years of the First World War . After the First World War, it relocated to smaller premises at 73–75 Queen's Gate in 1919, and then moved to 35 Cromwell Road in 1929, before transferring to the top floor of the South Block of Thames House on Millbank in 1934. The Service spent the first year of the Second World War at Wormwood Scrubs , before moving to Blenheim Palace , Oxfordshire, in 1940. After
8925-474: The security and intelligence services, can be committed only where the information, document or other article in question is or has been in the possession of the person in question by virtue of their position as such. The offences under sections 5(2), 5(6), 6(2), 8(4), 8(5) and 8(6) can be committed by any person. Sections 1(3), 2(1), 3(1), 5(3)(a) and 6(2) provide that the disclosures to which they apply are not an offence unless they are "damaging". Section 4(2)
9030-517: The service is bound by the Security Service Act 1989 . The service is directed to protect British parliamentary democracy and economic interests and to counter terrorism and espionage within the United Kingdom (UK). Within the civil service community, the service is colloquially known as Box , or Box 500 , after its official wartime address of PO Box 500; its current address is PO Box 3255, London SW1P 1AE. The Security Service
9135-712: The service's conduct is exercised by the Investigatory Powers Tribunal . Operations of the service are required to be proportionate, and compliant with British legislation, including the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 , the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 , the Data Protection Act 2018 , and various other items of legislation. Information held by the service is exempt from disclosure under section 23 of
9240-631: The truth. All foreigners entering the country were processed at the London Reception Centre (LRC) at the Royal Victoria Patriotic Building , which was operated by MI5 subsection B1D; 30,000 were inspected at LRC. Captured enemy agents were taken to Camp 020 , Latchmere House , for interrogation. This was commanded by Colonel Robin Stephens. There was a reserve camp, Camp 020R, at Huntercombe , which
9345-422: The war, the service was instrumental in breaking up a large Soviet spy ring at the start of the 1970s. It then allegedly became involved in monitoring trade unions and left-wing politicians. It also assumed responsibility for the investigation of all Irish republican activity within Britain during The Troubles . Its role was then expanded to countering other forms of terrorism, particularly in more recent years
9450-402: The war. Most significantly, its strict counter-espionage role blurred considerably. It acquired a much more political role, involving the surveillance not merely of foreign agents, but also of pacifist and anti- conscription organisations, and of organised labour . This was justified by citing the common belief that foreign influence was at the root of these organisations. Thus, by the end of
9555-519: Was alleged that the service was monitoring trade unions and left-wing politicians. A file was kept on Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson from 1945, when he became a Member of Parliament (MP), although the agency's official historian, Christopher Andrew maintains that his fears of MI5 conspiracies and bugging were unfounded. As Home Secretary, the Labour MP Jack Straw discovered the existence of his own file dating from his days as
9660-448: Was considered by some a highly amateurish outfit. Serious cover constraints, coupled with alcohol abuse and social fraternisation with local prostitutes would prove the downfall of several of these amateur sleuths. Despite these failings, it was not MI5, but one of Basil Thomson's agents, John Charles Byrnes, a double agent within the IRA, who identified Michael Collins , and came close to arranging his capture. The IRA identified Byrnes as
9765-511: Was declared. Portsmouth Constabulary jumped the gun and arrested one on 3 August, and not all of the 22 were in custody by the time that McKenna made his speech, but the official history regards the incident as a devastating blow to Imperial Germany , which deprived them of their entire spy ring, and specifically upset the Kaiser. In 2006, his article 'Entering the Lists' was published in the journal Intelligence and National Security , outlining
9870-461: Was extraordinarily successful. A post-war analysis of German intelligence records found that of the 115 or so agents targeted against Britain during the war, all but one (who committed suicide) had been successfully identified and caught, with several 'turned' to become double agents. The system played a major part in the massive campaign of deception which preceded the D-Day landings, designed to give
9975-505: Was instrumental in breaking up a large Soviet spy ring at the start of the 1970s, with 105 Soviet embassy staff known or suspected to be involved in intelligence activities being expelled from the country in 1971. One episode involving MI5 and the BBC came to light in the mid-1980s. MI5 officer Ronnie Stonham had an office in the BBC, and took part in vetting procedures. Controversy arose when it
10080-533: Was known as "D Branch" within Dublin Castle. By January 1921, the highly experienced MI6 operative David Boyle arrived at Dublin Castle to take over the day-to-day management of D Branch. The unit's former commander, Colonel Wilson, resigned in protest against having had his command taken from him. D Branch thrived under Boyle's leadership. The net impact of Collins's strike of Bloody Sunday, 21 November 1920,
10185-409: Was provided in confidence "by or on behalf of the United Kingdom to another State or to an international organisation" where that person obtained it without that State or organization's authorization, and where no other offence under the earlier sections of this Act applies. Lawful authority and prior authorized disclosure are defences against this offence. Sections 7(1) to (3) provide that a disclosure
10290-716: Was reactive, acting at the request of law enforcement bodies such as the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS), for whom MI5 officers performed electronic surveillance and eavesdropping duties during Operation Trinity . This role has subsequently been passed to the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) and then the National Crime Agency (NCA). In 2001, after the September 11 attacks in
10395-534: Was replaced initially by the ineffective Oswald Allen Harker , as Acting Director General. Harker in turn was quickly replaced by David Petrie , a Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) man, with Harker remaining as his deputy. With the ending of the Battle of Britain , and the abandonment of invasion plans (correctly reported by both SIS and the Bletchley Park Ultra project), the spy scare eased, and
10500-671: Was sacked, and the Home Intelligence Directorate was formally abolished. With Thomson out of the way, Special Branch was returned to the command of the Commissioner of The Criminal Investigation Division at Scotland Yard . Only then was Vernon Kell able once again to rebuild MI5 and re-establish it in its former place as Britain's chief domestic spy agency. MI5 operated in Italy during inter-war period, and helped Benito Mussolini get his start in politics with
10605-405: Was slashed from £100,000 to just £35,000, and its establishment from over 800 officers to a mere 12. At the same time, Sir Basil Thomson of Special Branch was appointed Director of Home Intelligence, in supreme command of all domestic counter-insurgency and counter-intelligence investigations. Consequently, as official MI5 historian Christopher Andrew has noted in his official history Defence of
10710-605: Was therefore quite negligible, even though the IRA had not gone up against MI5 professionals, but instead only against a quickly trained outfit of amateur army "D-Listers". That afternoon, a mixed force of the British Army, the Royal Irish Constabulary , and the Black and Tans retaliated by indiscriminately shooting dead 14 civilians at a Gaelic Football match at Croke Park . In 1921, Sir Warren Fisher ,
10815-491: Was turned into a massive and well-tuned system of deception during the Second World War. Beginning with the capture of an agent named Arthur Owens , codenamed 'Snow', MI5 began to offer enemy agents the chance to avoid prosecution (and thus the possibility of the death penalty) if they would work as British double-agents . Agents who agreed to this were supervised by MI5 in transmitting bogus 'intelligence' back to
10920-486: Was used mainly for long term detention of prisoners. It is believed that two MI5 officers participated in "a gentle interrogation" given to the senior Nazi Heinrich Himmler after his arrest at a military checkpoint in the northern German village of Bremervörde in May 1945. Himmler subsequently killed himself during a medical examination by a British officer by means of a cyanide capsule that he had concealed in his mouth. One of
11025-494: Was widespread collusion between British security forces and loyalist terrorists in the 1970s, which resulted in eighteen deaths. In 2012, a document based review by Sir Desmond de Silva QC into the 1989 murder of Belfast solicitor Patrick Finucane found that MI5 had colluded with the Ulster Defence Association (UDA). The review disclosed that MI5 assessments of UDA intelligence consistently noted that
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