LICENCED TO BILL

Is anyone surprised that secret agenting is more like secret accounting?

MI6 more like accountants than 007s

Sir Richard Dearlove's testimony to the Diana inquest made the security services sound more like a firm of accountants than a bunch of 007s, says Philip Johnston.

So now we know how the Government would go about wasting someone. Apparently, the modern secret agent is licensed to kill in extraordinary circumstances - but only if his boss first obtains a Class 7 authorisation, agreed by a management board and various operations directors, which is then signed by the Foreign Secretary and reviewed by a judge.

Thanks, Dissy.

Comments

[Helen]

But he looks the part, dunn'ee. That grey coat and scarf - very John Le Carre.

[carneagles]

So, it's really like, sort of, a Search Warrant with Extreme Prejudice.

[Brett Pee]

The Grey men strike back.

[Brett Pee]

The Grey men strike back.

[nick]

So they couldn't kill Castro, Saddam, Mugabe, Hitler, Kim-Il...they were too busy knocking Diana on the head. Makes sense to me.

[Tony T]

Helen: A confession. I never wanted to be Bond, I wanted to be M. Oxbridge. Much safer. Nice office. Fine lunches at fine clubs. The "Garden" for all the best music. And excellent threads.

[via collins]

Had a jar or two with a pal in a pub in Wandsworth many years back.

Said pub quite frequently called on the nearby Ministry of Defence building - just quietly: "we've another MOD laptop turn up when we cleaned the pub last night".

The sheer mechanics of getting pissed after work, and bringing national secrets hoem safely was somewhat of a stretch for the odd public servant.

[Tony T]

Channel Seven would have a field day finding things in the gutter.

[SM]

Well, it is all about accounting, as any spy & any fan of "The Sandbaggers" knows.