MPs to question ex-MI6 Director on counter-terrorism policy
On Tuesday 12 September, at 2.30pm, the Foreign Affairs Committee will hold an evidence session exploring the UK’s international counter-terrorism policy.
Meeting details
In the first of two panels, MPs will consider the most urgent terrorist threats facing the UK overseas, including in sub-Saharan Africa, Afghanistan, and the Sahel region, and how these might be impacted by the Integrated Review Refresh and updated CONTEST strategy.
MPs will hear evidence from Peter Neumann, Professor of Security Studies at Kings College London and Antonio Giustozzi, Senior Research Fellow at Royal United Services Institute. MPs’ questions may include how UK foreign policy has affected today’s terrorist threats, and how counter-terrorism has evolved since 9/11.
The second panel will focus on northeast Syria, where detention camps hold Islamic State fighters and prisoners. Witnesses will assess the current security situation in these camps, and examine how the UK’s policy concerning British nationals held in these camps and prisons affects counter-terrorism efforts.
Richard Barrett CMG OBE, former Director of Global Counter-Terrorism at MI6 will give evidence, alongside Professor Harmonie Toros, Professor of International Relations at the University of Reading, and Paul Jordan, Head of Responding to Violent Extremism at the European Institute of Peace. MPs are likely to ask the experts how the security situation in the prisons may impact on UK commitments in the region, and what lessons can be learnt from the UK’s policy in northeast Syria.