About

Professor Sir David Omand was the first UK Security and Intelligence Coordinator, and formerly director of GCHQ. Spending much of his career leading the UK’s national counter-terrorism strategy, he was directly responsible to the prime minister for homeland security. His book ‘How Spies Think: 10 Lessons in Intelligence’ is described as a “call to arms for more rational decision-making” and shares the spooks’ problem-solving skills. In this in-depth interview, Sir David argues the government has “failed to protect its citizens” against Covid-19 - after several warnings that a global pandemic was likely - and warns we now have “years of great disturbance” ahead; blames “disinformation, conspiracy theorists and social giants” for encouraging division and “creating a fundamentally fragmented society;” and recalls the pressure of making judgements then delivering difficult news to the PM - including giving the order to “ready the fleet” after warning Margaret Thatcher that Argentina was about to invade the Falkland Islands, and his ringside seat whilst Tony Blair dealt with 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq.