Meta Ramsay, the intelligence officer who was perhaps the most qualified candidate to become the first female head of MI6, has died at the age of 89. She was involved in the audacious escape of double agent Oleg Gordievsky and later became a Labour peer.
Career and Achievements
Ramsay joined MI6 in 1969 and served for 22 years, rising to a senior rank despite pervasive misogyny within the service. She was stationed in Stockholm and Helsinki, key posts on the "Moscow watch." Her most notable operation was the exfiltration of Oleg Gordievsky, a former KGB colonel, across the Finnish border in 1985.
After retiring from MI6 in 1991, she worked as a foreign policy adviser to Labour leader John Smith and later served in the House of Lords under Tony Blair. She co-chaired the constitutional convention that established the Scottish Parliament.
Early Life and Education
Born in Glasgow, Ramsay attended Hutchesons' Girls' Grammar School and Glasgow University, where she was the first female president of the Students' Representative Council. She later worked in international student cooperation, which likely brought her to the attention of MI6.
Legacy
Ramsay was a strong advocate for women in intelligence and criticized the downgrading of women's roles after World War II. She remained uncompromising in her belief that intelligence work should remain secret. She never married, as until 1973 marriage would have required her to leave the service.
