Spy chiefs face public grilling

Key Points

GCHQ director Sir Iain Lobban, MI5 director general Andrew Parker and MI6 chief Sir John Sawers will be quizzed by the Intelligence and Security Committee in public at 14:00 GMT
Intelligence chiefs have given evidence to the MPs and peers on the committee in private before. This session is being broadcast with a short time delay
Much of the focus has been on likely questions about the revelations by ex-US security contractor Edward Snowden about the scale of secret monitoring carried out by the US and GCHQ

Reporters: Gerry Holt, Justin Parkinson and Bernadette McCague

1403:

We are under way. Committee chairman, former Foreign Secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind, has calls the meeting to order and is making his opening statement.
1402:

These things can be quite dull, says BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner - what is known as the "snooze factor" on the other side of the Atlantic. But there are also serious questions over surveillance by the security services that need to be answered, he adds.
1400:

Also a quick reminder that the hearing is being broadcast with a two-minute delay to prevent anything being broadcast that might endanger national security. It raises the prospect of the feed being suspended for security reasons.
1358:

The BBC has security correspondent Gordon Corera at the hearing. We will bring you analysis of what is said as we get it.
1356:

Mobile phones have been banned from the committee room for the hearing, ITV News UK editor Lucy Manning tweets.
1354:

Just a reminder that this is the first time the heads of Britain's security services have given evidence in public - they usually talk about their work behind closed doors. BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says it is a real milestone but some of the evidence may be a little more mundane than people might like.