British intelligence agencies should use female-interest websites such as Mumsnet to advertise for new recruits, the UK parliamentary intelligence and security committee has recommended.



The committee’s report, published after an investigation into gender diversity in the domestic intelligence agency MI5, the overseas service MI6 and the surveillance organisation GCHQ, found that only 37% of 12,000 employees are women compared with 53% in the civil service. Of senior staff, women fill 38% of posts in the civil service compared with 19% in the intelligence agencies.

In its conclusion, the committee expressed dismay that male attitudes – such as who shouts the loudest – are still predominant. The cross-party committee, made up of MPs and peers, acknowledged that progress is being made but only slowly.

The report, published on Thursday, says: “It is clear to us there are those at middle management level – referred to by some people as ‘the permafrost’ – who have a very traditional male mentality and outlook. This can reinforce a management culture which rewards those who speak the loudest or are aggressive in pursuing their career and does not fully recognise the value of a more consultative, collaborative approach.”

It adds: “Even during our more recent visits, we sensed that leadership values are only slowly moving with the times and the value of a more consultative, collaborative approach is not always recognised.

“We are very concerned that this maintains an ‘alpha male’ management culture that rewards those who speak the loudest, or are aggressive in pursuing their career (and of course this can discriminate against less aggressive men as well as women).”



The committee made a series of recommendations, including targeting women from a range of backgrounds, not just graduates, and advertising on sites for women and mothers such as Mumsnet.

Labour MP Hazel Blears, who took the lead in committee’s investigation, said: “I believe there is a strong business imperative for greater diversity in the agencies. They should reflect the population they serve but, more importantly, they cannot fulfil their mandate without drawing on the broad range of talent and skills that a diverse workforce can offer.

“If all intelligence professionals are cut from the same cloth – sharing similar backgrounds and similar characteristics – then they are likely to share ‘unacknowledged biases’ which will circumscribe both the definition of problems and the search for solutions. Diversity will therefore result in better intelligence analysis and a better response to the range of threats that we face to our national security.”

The committee focused only on gender, not sexual orientation nor ethnic or religious backgrounds.

One of the few positive findings for the intelligence agencies in terms of gender is the ratio of women on agency boards, which compares favourably with the boards of FTSE 100 companies. All the agency boards have at least 25% women members and, in the case of GCHQ and MI6, 40% when non-executive board members are included.

The committee also found that 38% of new entrants to the three intelligence agencies are women, compared with 50% for the civil service. Forty-six percent of the UK workforce is made up of women.

Breaking down the figures further, women comprise 44% of entrants to MI6 but only 29% to GCHQ.

The committee set out targets for the agencies, which will be revisited next year. One of the key recommendations is in recruitment, suggesting that the agencies broaden their targets to include middle-aged or mid-career women or mothers.

Their report says: “The agencies should use a broad range of media to advertise, including those specifically for women and mothers such as Mumsnet. The agencies should examine their entry criteria. Many middle-aged women will have life experience but not necessarily the standard qualifications: which is more important?”

Other recommendations include encouraging women to apply for jobs or promotion. The report calls for support groups to be facilitated alongside pragmatic steps such as better childcare facilities.

The committee adds: “It is clear that all the agencies are making progress on gender diversity, and the benefits of this should start to be seen on both operational and corporate effectiveness. It is equally clear that the problems faced by each organisation are nuanced and therefore a ‘one size fits all’ approach is unlikely to be effective.

“Greater collaboration on diversity between the agencies, with their partner agencies around the world, and possibly private industry, would no doubt bring benefits.”

Former US secretary of state Madeleine Albright, who conducted a similar investigation examining women in the CIA, backed a proposal for more cooperation between the two countries in developing diversity within the agencies.

She said: “As Ms Blears rightly says, diversity should be pursued – not just on legal or ethical grounds, important as these are in their own right – but because it will result in a better response to the range of threats that threaten national security.”