Britain’s Intelligence Corps has lost one fifth of its officers in the past three years. A large number of upper-level staff members have exited the service in favor of more lucrative positions in the private sector.

The Ministry of Defense said it was facing challenges in its military intelligence staffing. This is a troubling development, since the apparent threat of more terrorist attacks looms ever larger.

The Daily Mail reported that senior officers within the intelligence service were worried that the loss of so many officers is putting under-trained and under-experienced people in jobs for which they are not qualified.

“To sustain what the Intelligence Corps is doing, losing 20 percent of officers is pretty hard,” a Daily Mail source said. “To some extent they can no longer fill posts that they wish to because they just don’t have enough people; they have to give the jobs to non-specialists.”

A defense spokesman told the Daily Telegraph, “We face challenges in recruiting and retention in specific areas in all the services, not just the army and not just the Intelligence Corps. We are trying hard to resolve them.”

“There are circumstances where some officers may substitute for senior officers,” the spokesman admitted. “This is done on a case by case basis.”

Threats to Britain are tracking through the middle of a steeply climbing curve. Presently, Islamic terrorism, which has already blasted London, appears to be the biggest threat to the island nation. However, a unified Europe, soon to be a military powerhouse, may soon prove to be an even greater threat. Whether or not the intelligence service itself is the lynchpin of British defense, a severely understaffed Intelligence Corps and army make the nation much less able to defend itself when attack comes.

For a panoramic view of the threats facing Britain and an international forecast for the immediate future, read The United States and Britain in Prophecy.