MI6 boss pledges to put a woman on the shortlist for his successor as ‘C’ to run the Secret Intelligence Service
- Richard Moore, head of MI6, said it’s time for women to be considered as chief
- He said he will help ‘forge women’s equality’ by getting rid of all-male shortlists
The UK’s top spy has vowed to end all-male shortlists ahead of the appointment of his successor as chief of the Secret Intelligence Service.
Richard Moore, the head of MI6, who is also known by the codeword ‘C’, has signalled the time has come to follow in the footsteps of sister agency MI5 – which has already had two women at its helm.
In a tweet, Moore, who has been in the post since 2020 and is expected to be there for a further two years at least, said: ‘I will help forge women’s equality by working to ensure I’m the last C selected from an all-male shortlist.’
About 3,600 personnel are employed by MI6 in its London headquarters at Vauxhall Cross on the south bank of the River Thames and in covert locations around the world.
But despite nearly half of them being women, with a growing number working in senior roles, none has ever made the shortlist to become the head of the service.
Richard Moore (pictured), the head of MI6, who is also known by the codeword ‘C’, has signalled the time has come to follow in the footsteps of sister agency MI5 – which has already had two women at its helm
By contrast, MI5, situated almost directly opposite on the north bank of the Thames, has had two female director generals – Dame Stella Rimington and Baroness Eliza Manningham-Buller.
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In theory, the Foreign Secretary, who is ultimately responsible for the activities of MI6, has the final say on who should be appointed as C.
But any views of the incumbent in the post would carry a great deal of weight with a selection board.
Intelligence sources have said that female spies have taken part in covert operations around the globe, often working closely with British Special Forces in some of the world’s most dangerous countries.
Moore, 59, has often been vocal on Twitter about social issues within MI6.
He has previously encouraged more women to join the agency when he praised female spies, calling them ‘inspiring’, and has said he is ‘keen to see even greater diversity of skills and backgrounds’.
He has also previously urged more people with disabilities to join Britain’s secret intelligence services after revealing that his wife is blind.
The spymaster said that he wanted the organisation to become a better place for disabled people to work.
He referred to his wife, Maggie, who has been at his side on numerous postings around the world, as an inspiration.
In another tweet, he said: ‘Married as I am to an inspiring blind woman, I feel particularly strongly about making MI6 a better place for disabled people to pursue careers.’
His wife helped to establish the Turkish Guide Dogs Association when he was ambassador to the country from 2014 to 2017.
The couple, who married in 1985 and have a son and daughter, are fluent Turkish speakers.
In 2021, Mr Moore became the first head of one of Britain’s spy agencies to publicly apologise for MI6’s historic treatment of LGBT people.
He said a security bar on LGBT staff until 1991 had been ‘wrong, unjust and discriminatory’.
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