GCHQ boss calls for new relationship with tech firms over encryption

Robert Hannigan says he wants dialogue in a less 'highly charged atmosphere' and denies he wants mandatory backdoors

The director of GCHQ has said it is time for a new relationship between US and British intelligence agencies and tech companies, which have been at odds over encryption.

In a speech to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Robert Hannigan called for dialogue in a less "highly charged atmosphere" and disclosed that David Cameron would set out a process in the next few months that "can shed some really useful light. And, for my part, my promise today is to engage in that process with the tech industry openly, respectfully and in good faith".