Former MI6 chief Sir Alex Younger dies aged 62

Sir Alex Younger, the former head of MI6, has died aged 62 after being treated for cancer.

Sir Alex, who led MI6 between 2014 and 2020, held a career in British intelligence that spanned almost three decades after joining the service in 1991.

A former British Army officer, he held postings in Europe and the Middle East and Afghanistan, before turning to commentating on global security.

In a 2016 speech, the former intelligence chief famously said James Bond, the fictional spy, would not pass the agency’s recruitment process. He later led recruitment calls to meet the “fourth generation espionage” needed to face evolving global threats.