Immigration security

Ex-MI6 boss fears migration could spark rise of far Right and warns 'terrorist virus' will grow if EU can't control its borders

Europe risks importing the ‘terrorist virus’ and sparking ‘popular uprisings’ if it can’t control its borders, a former spy chief warned last night.

Ex-MI6 head Sir Richard Dearlove said the European Union’s response to the influx of migrants has been ‘hesitant’, ‘unsure’ and ‘perverse’.

This failure was fuelling the risk of the resurgence of far-Right movements, he said.

He added that ‘millions’ of migrants from the Middle East and Africa are set to head to the continent in the next five years – many of whom will then be able to take advantage of Brussels’ free movement rules.

And he said it was inevitable that a few of these would carry what he called a ‘terrorist virus’.

He heavily criticised the EU bid to solve the migrant crisis by offering visa-free access to millions of Turks, saying it was ‘like storing gasoline next to the fire one is trying to extinguish’

Sir Richard rejected David Cameron’s claim that Brexit would make the UK less safe, saying there would actually be ‘some security gains if we left’.