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UK's secret service moves from the shadows to the Web

It may sound the death knell of the traditional recruitment method for British spies, the nod and a wink from tutors at Ivy League universities Oxford and Cambridge.

Yesterday the UK's Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6, stepped on to the public stage with the launch of a Web site to attract newcomers from a wider variety of backgrounds.

In a culture shock for an old school for whom absolute secrecy was paramount, Britain's future spies will be able to apply to a special PO box number.

"SIS is currently recruiting all grades," says the service's Web site.

The move offers a tantalizing glimpse of MI6's clandestine world -- including a teasing reference to James Bond. It comes at a time when the intelligence service is making efforts to recover from the battering it received from the row about the Iraqi weapons dossier, including pointed criticism contained in Lord Butler's report into the use of intelligence in the run-up to the invasion of Iraq.

The site paints a picture of exciting -- though not too exciting -- careers, and of an agency with what it calls a "family" atmosphere.

It emphasizes the need for individual initiative, but also the need for teamwork, something Bond was not known for.

Yet the spirit of Bond lives on.

"James Bond, as Ian Fleming originally conceived him, was based on reality," the Web site explains. "But any author needs to inject a level of glamour and excitement beyond reality in order to sell."

"By the time the film-makers focused on Bond the gap between truth and fiction had already widened.Nevertheless, staff who join SIS can look forward to a career that will have moments when the gap narrows just a little and the certainty of a stimulating and rewarding career which, like Bond's, will be in the service of their country," the Web site says.

MI6's task is to gather secret intelligence abroad to promote and defend British interests.

MI6 says it needs people prepared to be deployed on frontline operations, but also those who would prefer to play vital supporting roles. It says it is after people "not afraid to take well-calculated decisions under pressure."

For those on operations, "living abroad and frequent foreign travel is a certainty," the Web site says.

"Adventure" is a word they use a lot. They insist the agency is not dominated by a macho culture.

MI6 insists it will continue to protect "the secrets of its sources and methods." Potential candidates, says the Web site, "should not divulge to anyone other than a spouse or close partner" their application to join.
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