MI5 Boss Warns UK Terror Risk Is Greater Than Ever And Could Get Worse

In the first live interview given by a serving MI5 boss, Andrew Parker has confirmed to the BBC more or less what everybody was already thinking.

The terror threat is very real, should not be ignored, and it’s likely to be impossible for MI5 to truly stay on top of it.

Parker told the BBC that the current terrorism threat is the "most serious threat Britain faces in security terms".

He also claimed that the previous 12 months had seen the highest amount of terror plots foiled by the service in his 32-year career. Adding that it was: "Certainly the highest number since 9/11."

His comments come just weeks after it was revealed that police had foiled an ISIS terror threat to kill the queen.

The security boss also suggested that current legal infringements on what the security agency could and couldn’t monitor could have a detrimental effect on national security. Particularly that of online data encryption services who are creating a situation where the police and MI5 could "no longer obtain under proper legal warrant the communication of people they believe to be terrorists".

He added: "It’s a very serious issue. It’s in nobody’s interests that terrorists should be able to plot and communicate out of the reach of authorities."

Commenting on the killers of Fusilier Lee Rigby, he said: "There cannot be a guarantee that we will find and stop everything. That’s not possible. We can’t monitor them all the time."

Parker went on to conclude that the new legislation for online security would be for "Parliament to decide", although it was clear which side of the fence he sat when it came to constricting the efforts of security forces.