The threat of terrorism to UK citizens, businesses and the general economy is serious and increasing, according to Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller, the Director General of the UK Security Service.

In a speech given yesterday (9th November) Dame Eliza spoke of the current threat, the factors that lie behind the increase in terrorism and the work that is being done to counter it. She paid tribute to the efforts of Security Service staff and the police, citing the risks that they face in protecting the public.

Pointing out that the current threat began well before 9/11, Dame Eliza cited a range of factors that were motivating acts of terrorism, such as ‘perceived injustices against Muslims around the world’, ‘extreme interpretations of Islam’ and ‘aspects of UK foreign policy’.

“We are aware of numerous plots to kill people and to damage our economy. What do I mean by numerous? Five? Ten? No, nearer thirty - that we know of. These plots often have links back to Al-Qaida in Pakistan and through those links Al-Qaida gives guidance and training to its largely British foot soldiers here on an extensive and growing scale. And it is not just the UK of course. Other countries also face a new terrorist threat: from Spain to France to Canada and Germany,” said Dame Eliza.

Dame Eliza stressed that she wasn’t being hyperbolic in her warnings: “A word on proportionality,” she said. “My Service and the police have occasionally been accused of hype and lack of perspective or worse, of deliberately stirring up fear. It is difficult to argue that there are not worse problems facing us, for example climate change... and of course far more people are killed each year on the roads than die through terrorism. It is understandable that people are reluctant to accept assertions that do not always appear to be substantiated. It is right to be sceptical about intelligence. … But just consider this. A terrorist spectacular would cost potentially thousands of lives and do major damage to the world economy. Imagine if a plot to bring down several passenger aircraft succeeded. Thousands dead, major economic damage, disruption across the globe. And Al-Qaida is an organisation without restraint.

“I have spoken as an intelligence professional, describing the reality of terrorism and counter terrorism in the UK in 2006. My messages are sober ones. I do not speak in this way to alarm (nor as the cynics might claim to enhance the reputation of my organisation) but to give the most frank account I can of the Al-Qaida threat to the UK. That threat is serious, is growing and will, I believe, be with us for a generation. It is a sustained campaign, not a series of isolated incidents. It aims to wear down our will to resist.”

Full speech: http://www.mi5.gov.uk/output/Page568.html

Previously, Dame Eliza has advised UK companies to invest in business continuity as a way to protect themselves against terrorism. At the 2004 CBI conference she told businesses that "the most effective thing they can do to protect themselves against terrorism is to develop a simple but effective continuity plan" and to "ensure that business continuity plans are considered at board level not ‘left to specialists’."

•Date: 10th Nov 2006• Region: UK •Type: Article •Topic: Terrorism
Rate this article or make a comment - click here