Overview
- His family confirmed he died in Boston in the early hours of Tuesday after a prostate cancer diagnosis in 2025, and he is survived by his wife and daughter following the earlier death of his son Sam in 2019.
- Younger was a career MI6 officer who joined in 1991 and served in the Balkans, the Middle East and Afghanistan before rising to head of counter‑terrorism in 2009 and chief of MI6, known as ‘C’, from 2014 to 2020.
- He led responses to major security events during his tenure, including security for the 2012 London Olympics and MI6’s response to the 2018 Salisbury Novichok poisonings, and he pushed the service toward technology, cyber and ‘fourth‑generation’ espionage.
- Senior figures paid tribute to his service, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the Prince of Wales and current MI6 chief Blaise Metreweli praising his integrity, leadership and public-facing warnings on state threats.
- In retirement Younger became an outspoken commentator urging Britain to rearm and rebuild reserves to meet threats from Russia; his death is likely to revive public debate on defence priorities, intelligence transparency and force readiness.