All posts tagged: MI5

This Week in History: Labour landslide, LA riots, and an MI5 scandal

This Week in History: Labour landslide, LA riots, and an MI5 scandal

Published by Daniella Wilson

Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more This week is marked by major political shifts. Tony Blair secures a Labour landslide in 1997, while over a million demonstrators in France protest against the electoral rise of the far-right politician Jean-Marie Le Pen. A newly published memoir exposes a 1974 MI5 plot against the former prime minister Harold Wilson. Across the Atlantic, widespread riots break out in Los Angeles following the acquittal of police officers involved in the beating of Black motorist Rodney King. Decades later, US politics takes a surreal turn as President Barack Obama is pressured into releasing his birth certificate. All this and more is charted across the front pages of The Independent. 27 April 1987 – MI5 plot against Harold Wilson revealed According to the explosive memoirs of …

Reform UK interested in MI5 help on candidate vetting – POLITICO

Reform UK interested in MI5 help on candidate vetting – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Reform leader Nigel Farage in 2024 blamed a “reputable vetting company” for oversights in helping sift its candidates ahead of the general election after one praised Hitler and backed Russia’s war in Ukraine. He apologized, adding: “We have been stitched up politically and that’s given us problems.” MI5’s role in vetting is limited to its own staff and certain levels of security clearance for specific government and official roles in Whitehall. Its offer to candidates is expected to be limited to helping parties assess foreign interference risks, rather than any official security clearance. POLITICO asked the six main Westminster parties if they will take MI5 up on its offer to assist in their vetting processes. The ruling Labour Party, the Conservatives, the Greens and the Liberal Democrats all declined to comment. The Scottish National Party did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The offer from Ken McCallum is part of a wider effort by the U.K. government and security services to shore up British democracy amid a wave of espionage activity from hostile …

Failed asylum seeker left fake dynamite stick near MI5 HQ | UK | News

Failed asylum seeker left fake dynamite stick near MI5 HQ | UK | News

Published by Sam Flores

MI5 building at Thames House on Millbank, London, UK (Image: UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) A failed asylum seeker has been found guilty of leaving a fake stick of dynamite outside MI5 headquarters a day after being told he would be kicked out of the UK. Brazilian national Julian Valente Pereira, 32, mocked up an explosive device with rolled-up A4 paper, brown masking tape, and string to mimic a fuse, and left it outside Thames House in central London. The incident happened on January 1, the day after Pereira’s final appeal for asylum had been dismissed by a judge. An explosives expert from counter-terrorism policing had to be drafted in after MI5 CCTV operators spotted Pereira dropping the device near the front doors of the building along with a green cigarette lighter, City of London Magistrates’ Court heard. Pereira, who admits he “hates the Home Office”, denied carrying out a bomb hoax – insisting he never intended for anyone to believe the device was real. But Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring found him guilty, concluding Pereira knew he was being watched – …