Government plans MI5 expansion
Home secretary David Blunkett is reportedly planning a large-scale expansion of the Security Service.
Mr Blunkett is due to announce plans this week to recruit an extra 1,000 staff over the next few years for MI5, in a bid to counter the threat of terrorist attacks.
The recruitment plans mean a 50 per cent increase in the Security Service’s numbers, taking it back to levels last seen during the Second World War.
The expansion involves the recruitment of many more Arabic speakers in order to focus on the threat of attacks from al Qaeda and similar organisations.
It will take several years to find and vet the staff. MI5 previously focused largely on IRA and Cold War threats.
Opposition parties have welcomed the news, though Tory homeland security spokesman Patrick Mercer said that the expansion was long overdue.
MI5 believes there are thousands of young people moving in and out of Britain with links to terrorist groups.
Home Secretary David Blunkett is to make the announcement in the House of Commons during a debate on terrorism measures brought in after the September 11th attacks in New York. He is expected to urge MPs to back the renewal of the legislation, which allows the detention of foreign terror suspects without trial.
MI5 currently employs around 1,900 people. The details of the new positions have already been posted on the agency’s website.
