In UK, woman will head MI6 for the first time

The UK has appointed a woman to the post of head of the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) for the first time in its history. Blaise Metreweli, a 47-year-old career intelligence officer, who now heads the technology department of MI6 and is known by the call sign "Q", became the head.

This was reported by Reuters, citing official confirmation.

Metreweli has worked for MI6 since 1999, having spent most of her career in operational positions in Europe and the Middle East. In the autumn, she will replace the current head of the service, Richard Moore, who is completing a five-year term. In her new role, she will be known by the code name "C" - the traditional code name for the head of MI6.

"I am proud and consider it an honour to be entrusted with leading my service," Metreweli said.

The appointment came amid geopolitical instability. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, speaking at the G7 summit in Canada, called the decision relevant at a time when “Britain faces threats of an unprecedented scale,” in particular from russia, China and Iran.

It should be noted that British intelligence has repeatedly accused russia of sabotage attempts in Europe. Countering Chinese influence and preventing Iranian attacks on opposition figures in Britain are also priorities for British intelligence.

Before MI6, Blaise Metreweli worked as a director at MI5, where there have also been female leaders, including Stella Rimington and Eliza Manningham-Buller. In 2023, a woman was also appointed as the head of another intelligence agency, GCHQ, for the first time.

Metreweli has a degree in anthropology from the University of Cambridge.

Her appointment comes exactly 30 years after Judi Dench played the first female head of MI6 in the film Goldeneye. Previously, Barbara Woodward, the UK's permanent representative to the UN, had been mentioned as a potential candidate for the position.