Lord (Jonathan) Evans was Director-General of the British Security Service (MI5) from 2007-13. An expert on security matters, he joined the board of HSBC in 2013 as a Non-Executive Director to help the bank combat financial and cyber crime.
Dubbed by The Independent as ‘The spy who came out from the cold’, Lord Evans was Britain’s top domestic spy. His main focus was counter-terrorism, both international and domestic, including initiatives against cyber threats. As Director General he was a senior advisor to the UK government on national security policy and attended the National Security Council.Lord Evans can draw satisfaction from the dramatic transformation in Britain’s ability to protect itself against the modern menace of Islamist terrorism that has taken place on his watch.
As head of MI5, Evans was one of the British government’s principal advisors on national security threats including terrorism, cyber security and espionage and was a member of the Prime Minister’s National Security Council. He also led MI5’s work to ensure the security of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games in London.
In the course of a long career in MI5, Lord Evans worked as both an investigator and an operational officer on a variety of national security threats, specialising in counterterrorism and counterespionage. He became the Director responsible for MI5’s International Counterterrorism work on 1 September 2001, ten days before 9/11.
Lord Evans gives speeches to select audiences on the security threats and challenges facing western societies in the 21st century. Drawing on his long 33 year career in the security services, he can help companies to foresee security threats and take appropriate preventative measures.
Lord Evans has a Certificate in Company Direction from the Institute of Directors, an Honorary Doctorate from Bristol University, is a Freeman of the City of London, and is a Senior Associate Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute. He is also a Non-Executive Director of the UK National Crime Agency, a Senior Associate Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute and an Honorary Professor at the University of St Andrews.
He writes an occasional series for the Sunday Times on classic cars.
