Last year the Daily Telegraph reported that a devout Christian was rejected for a job at the Government’s communications headquarters (GCHQ) because his religious beliefs had raised “national security issues”. When Charles Storey told interviewers that his devotion to God outweighed his loyalty to the state he was informed he was “not a suitable candidate”.
In common with most stories relating to the three national security agencies – GCHQ, MI5 and MI6 – the report failed to examine in any detail the issues of personal loyalty that might be involved. It is understandable that a committed Christian working in the moral minefield of modern technology, and the hacking of cyber traffic and social communications, might in some circumstances be troubled by qualms of conscience. And promoting extraordinary rendition for intelligence-gathering purposes would almost certainly seem an unacceptable practice.
