Links to Russia

The Conservative Party is in the pocket of foreign powers that represent a threat to the national security of Britain. It is a grotesquely underreported national scandal, lost amid a hysterical Tory campaign to delegitimise the Labour Party with false allegations of treason. If Labour had received £820,000 from Russian-linked oligarchs and companies in the past 20 months – and indeed £3 million since 2010 – the media outrage would be deafening. But this is the Tory party, so there are no cries of treachery, of being in league with a hostile foreign power, of threatening the nation’s security.

When questioned about the Russian donations to the Tory party, the chancellor, Philip Hammond, pointedly refused to return the money. ‘‘There are people in this country who are British citizens, who are of Russian origin,’’ he protested. ‘‘I don’t think we should taint them, or should tar them, with Putin’s brush.’’

How noble: a Tory challenging the demonisation of migrants. Then there are the links to other regimes that combine contempt for human rights with a threat to our national security. Including Saudi Arabia.

How is it morally acceptable for the Tories to take the Russian or Saudi shilling? What are the practical implications of this? And where is the never-ending media outrage over it? The answers to these three questions paint a damning picture indeed.