Foreign Secretary: 'Stop blaming UK spies for radicalising Muslims into ISIS extremists'

Philip Hammond blasted parties blaming UK intelligence for harassing Muslims to a point whereby they radicalised.

17:57 10 March 2015

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said that UK spies should not be blamed for Muslims who have turned into ISIS extremists. Defending the UK’s security services today, he said that the country is facing an “unprecendented” level of challenge from so-called “lone wolf” terrorists.

"We are absolutely clear: the responsibility for acts of terror rests with those who commit them. But a huge burden of responsibility also lies with those who act as apologists for them," Mr Hammond said.

"The emergence of groups such as Boko Haram in Nigeria and (IS) in Syria, Iraq and Libya simply serves to underline the pace with which the threats to our safety and security from this source are evolving," said Mr Hammond.

"It is only thanks to the dedication, and in many cases the brilliance, of our intelligence officers that we have succeeded to detect and contain these threats."

"As the range of threats gets bigger, so the pace of technological change with which the agencies must keep up is getting faster, making their central task of keeping us safe ever more demanding," he added.

"We must respond decisively and positively to the public and parliamentary debate about the powers required by our intelligence agencies to do their job in a changed technological environment - and in doing so draw a line under that debate so that the agencies can get on with the job of keeping this country safe."