MI5 has a “blind spot” when it comes to dealing with the legacy of the Northern Ireland Troubles, PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher has said.

The Chief Constable faced a call at the Policing Board for “root-and-branch” review of his force’s relationship with MI5 following the publication of the Operation Kenova report.

The report looked at the actions of Stakeknife, the Army’s top spy in the Provisional IRA’s internal security unit during the Troubles.

The agent has been linked to at least 14 murders and 15 abductions.

He was widely believed to be west Belfast man Freddie Scappaticci, who was 77 when he died in 2023.

The report said that MI5’s initial failure to disclose all it knew about Stakeknife to Kenova investigators was a “significant failure”.

It also said that MI5 had “earli

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