UK 'is soft touch' says think-tank

My Account
Logout

Create an Evening Standard Account

Use your social network

Save time by using your existing account to sign in to Evening Standard

We'll never share your information or post anything to your account without your permission

Welcome! Sign in here

Use your social network

Save time by using your existing account to sign in to Evening Standard

We'll never share your information or post anything to your account without your permission

Forgot your password ?

Registration

* indicates fields that are mandatory

Email *

Password *

Confirm Password *

First name *

Surname *

Postcode *

Country *

Mobile phone number

Username *

Gender *

Year of birth *

When you sign up...

You will have access to all our online competitions, discounted offers and can post comments on our site.

You will also receive The Weekender newsletter sent every Thursday - it’s full of fantastic offers and ideas for the weekend. You can update your email preferences in your account page when you log in.

Other newsletters and emails

Homes & Property Newsletter - Yes I want to receive the weekly email with all the latest news on property in the capital

Occasionally we would also like to send you relevant emails detailing specific offers either from ourselves or carefully selected partners. If you would prefer not to receive these then please tick the appropriate boxes below. We will never pass on your details.

I do not want to receive additional offers and information from the Evening Standard

I do not want to receive additional offers and information sent by Evening Standard on behalf of carefully selected partners

Terms and Conditions

* I have read, understood and agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of Evening Standard

Registration

Mail Sent for Registration Confirmation.

A confirmation email has been sent. Please activate your account by clicking on the activation link sent in your mail box.

A report by the Royal United Services Institute said that a loss of confidence in the nation's identity and institutions was making the United Kingdom a "target" for attack.

It contrasted the sense of national "fragmentation" with the "implacability" of the Islamic terrorists now threatening the country from within and externally.

The failure to "lay down the line" to immigrant communities had undermined the fight against extremism, it said, and it urged ministers to restore defence and security as the first duty of government.

Specifically, the report called for the creation of a powerful new Cabinet committee, made up of senior ministers, officials and defence chiefs, to co-ordinate security policy across the full spectrum of government activity.

It said that the committee should be backed by a second joint committee of both Houses of Parliament intended to identify gaps in capability and build consensus on security and defence issues.

The report is based on the deliberations of a group of academics and senior military figures.

They said the world appeared to be living in a "time of remission" between the 9/11 attacks of 2001 and their eventual successor which may deliver "an even greater psychological blow".

There were, the report said, "uneasy similarities" with the years before the First World War, while a loss of public confidence in the institutions of government was weakening Britain's ability to defend against new threats.