British Spies:
Licensed to Be Gay
By Catherine Mayer /
London, Posted August 19, 2008
GayPASG e-mail August
25, 2008
If James Bond ever tires of working
for the Secret Intelligence Service (all those tedious long-haul flights), its
sister organization, MI5, responsible for Britain's domestic security, might be
interested. After all, the fictional spy has kept abreast of technology, is
keenly aware that failed states harbor Britain's enemies, and has even given up
smoking ("I can blow someone's head off, but I can't light a good cigar,"
growled current Bond actor Daniel Craig). Moreover, though still a
ladykiller — sometimes quite literally — the priapic secret agent has morphed
from infamous misogynist to indiscriminate misanthrope. He's discovered
sexual equality, and so, it appears, has MI5.
Still, Bond might face tougher competition than he did in the old days.
For Britain's domestic intelligence agency, it was revealed this week, now not
only welcomes but actively seeks gay applicants. "For the sort of work
that MI5 is doing — not just in operations but in terms of technical support and
linguistics — the caliber of people is terribly important to its effectiveness,"
says Ben Summerskill, chief executive of the gay rights group Stonewall.
Sexual preference is a nonissue.
Summerskill has an unusual insight into the recruitment strategy of Britain's
intensely secretive domestic intelligence agency. He was contacted "some
months ago" by MI5 and asked to help encourage gay men and women to consider
careers with the service and set up a network for its existing gay and lesbian
employees. The move inspired punning headlines in the British press ("The
Guy Who Loved Me") and raised a few eyebrows among older generations, who
remember that for many years, gays and lesbians were explicitly barred from
working for Britain's intelligence and diplomatic services.
That policy — instituted on the basis that gay officials might be vulnerable to
blackmail — was lifted at the start of the 1990s, but perceptions of Whitehall
as a place where it's better to stay in the closet have been harder to shift.
"All we're doing is making sure as a prospective employer we're spreading our
net as wide as possible to attract the best possible candidates who fully
represent the diversity of U.K. society," says a senior Whitehall source.
Summerskill suggests that gay candidates may even have an advantage over
straight rivals. "If you have grown up as part of a minority community,
you're probably more used to fitting in and being inconspicuous," he says.
"You have a distinct skill set that is of use."
Until gay sex was decriminalized in 1967, Britain's gay community protected
itself against potential prosecution by conducting conversations in a special
argot, Polari, a mixture of Italian, Romany and London slang. The British
security services are eager to attract candidates with good language skills, but
Polari isn't on the list. Still, Summerskill is so confident that MI5's
diversity policies are sincere that the agency is listed in Stonewall's latest
graduate recruitment guide as a gay-friendly employer. "This wouldn't be
happening if we didn't think they were taking some strenuous steps to move
forward," says Summerskill. "What MI5 has realized is that if you refuse
to employ gay people for decades, it takes some time before a public message is
received that signals that's no longer the case."
Intelligence agencies in other parts of the world drew similar conclusions
awhile ago. The CIA hosted a gay-pride celebration for its staff and
colleagues from the National Security Agency back in 2000. A French
counterintelligence official says that "in nearly 20 years in this business,
I've never heard sexual orientation mentioned at all in discussing recruitment
policies or individuals, including people whose homosexuality is a matter of
virtual public record."
Security services are wary of employing anyone with "excessive habits," says the
official. This could be bad news for Bond, whose sexual appetites clearly
register on the high end of the scale. Perhaps he should reconsider that
job move.
With reporting by Bruce Crumley / Pars
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