Spy agencies repeat internship white British applicants cannot apply for
First launched in 2023, the MI5, MI6 and GCHQ Summer Intelligence Internship has been offered only to young people from a 'Black, Asian, mixed heritage or ethnic minority background and from a socially or economically disadvantaged background'.
When the scheme for this summer was first advertised, Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, described the programme as 'racist' and called for it to be axed.
'I understand the need to encourage applications from a wide range of backgrounds, including under-represented minorities,' he said.
'But this is an overtly racist policy and it should be immediately discontinued. It implies it's impossible for any white person to be deprived or deserving of assistance.'
Claire Coutinho, the shadow energy secretary, said: 'Deciding who can do a summer internship scheme based on the colour of their skin is bad enough. To bar patriotic white Britain's who want to serve their country, but allow white Irish people, is utterly mad.
'To make matters worse, the security services will also shut you out if you're a child of a nurse, a cabbie or your dad ran a corner shop, while the child of an £80,000 a year train driver is eligible.
'This is state-sponsored discrimination. We should just choose the best people for the job. The Conservatives will defend fairness and stand firmly against ideology replacing competence.'
However, despite widespread criticism the scheme is set to go ahead.
The programme will run for 10 or more weeks depending on the service, and has been offered to 'increase diversity within our organisations' by the intelligence services.
The advert also states that applicants must also be 'from a socially or economically disadvantaged background', as alongside ethnic minorities they are 'currently under-represented in the UK's Intelligence Services'.
One former senior Royal Air Force (RAF) officer previously said he believed the decision not to allow poor white students to apply is 'blatant discrimination'.
Tim Davies, a former squadron leader, said: 'Opportunities are being denied to white children, that's just a fact, they cannot apply just because they are white.'
He said that the RAF had made a similar mistake when pursuing a recruitment policy, which led to accusations that it had discriminated against white men in its effort to meet 'aspirational diversity targets'.
The Ministry of Defence subsequently admitted that 'despite the best of intentions, some mistakes were made' in its approach, after reports of a recruitment drive which appeared to favour women and ethnic minority candidates.
The inquiry followed the resignation of the RAF's head of recruitment, after she reportedly refused an order to hire more diverse candidates because she believed it was 'unlawful'.
Earlier this year, The Telegraph reported that an intern hired by GCHQ stole secret data and returned home with it, in what was described as a national security breach.
Hasaan Arshad, 25, took his work mobile to a top secret area of the GCHQ building, connected it to a workstation, and was then allowed to take the device home unchallenged.
Thereafter he transferred sensitive information to a hard drive linked to his personal computer, and was arrested a month later downloading it.
It was not clear whether Arshad was admitted as an intern through the diversity scheme.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, the department responsible for the Security Services, was contacted for comment.
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