MPs’ sanctions ‘badge of honour’

BRITISH MPs were wearing sanctions as a “badge of honour” after Moscow banned nearly 300 from entering Russia in retaliatory action over the UK’s response to the invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian foreign ministry said yesterday it was taking action against 287 members of the House of Commons in response to sanctions against Russian politicians, though its list contained numerous former MPs. A statement accused the Conservative and Labour members of “whipping up of Russophobic hysteria”.

Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov’s department announced the move in response to the UK sanctioning 386 members of the Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, last month.

Boris Johnson said the MPs “should regard it as a badge of honour”, Tory former chief whip Mark Harper said he was “proud” to be included, and ex-minister Andrew Murrison said he was “delighted”, while former Brexit secretary David Davis joked “how ever will I cope?”

The sanctions list also includes ministers Jacob Rees-Mogg, Amanda Milling and Penny Mordaunt, as well as Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle. But the supposed list of “members of the Conservative Party faction in the House of Commons” appeared well out of date.

Charlie Elphicke, who was thrown out of the party and jailed after being found guilty of three counts of sexual assault, was also included. So too were Sir Oliver Letwin, Dominic Grieve and Justine Greening – who all had the whip withdrawn for rebelling over Brexit and were no longer MPs after the 2019 election.