Intel ethical core

James Bond wouldn’t make the grade in modern MI6, says Britain’s top spy

Fictional super-spy James Bond’s lack of a moral compass would quickly rule him out of the intelligence services today, the head of MI6 said in a rare public statement.

In a question-and-answer session for the Black History Month website, spy chief Alex Younger said 007’s lack of an ethical core would have seen him rejected from training.

We know that if we undermine British values, even in the name of defending them, then we have failed. Our staff are not from another planet,” Younger said.

“They are ordinary men and women operating in the face of complex moral, ethical and physical challenges, often in the most forbidding environments on Earth.”

“In contrast to James Bond, MI6 officers are not for taking moral shortcuts. In fact, a strong ethical core is one of the first qualities we look for in our staff,” he added.

Younger insisted that Bond’s erratic individualism would certainly have rendered him unable to “get through our recruitment process.”