Anne Keast-Butler has been appointed as the first-ever female director of the UK's intelligence communications agency, Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ). Her role will involve protecting the country from cyber-criminals, terrorists, and hostile foreign powers.
Keast-Butler will take over from Jeremy Fleming in May 2023, who has held the position for six years. The appointment was made by Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, who praised Keast-Butler's extensive experience in the national security network.
Currently serving as Deputy Director General at MI5, she is expected to use her knowledge to help safeguard the British public. GCHQ is Britain's primary surveillance agency and operates in partnership with the US National Security Agency, with intelligence agencies in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, as part of the "Five Eyes" alliance. GCHQ, which can trace its origins back to the early 1900s at the onset of World War I, is following in MI5's footsteps by appointing a woman as its head, albeit three decades later.
The group recently issued a rare statement about its cyber work, confirming that its operatives had targeted state-sponsored disinformation campaigns, election meddling and militant groups. GCHQ's appointment of Keast-Butler follows in the footsteps of MI5, which appointed its first-ever female director over 30 years ago. Stella Rimington led MI5 in 1992 and served as the inspiration for the character of "M" in the James Bond film series.
(Image Source: GCHQ.gov.uk)