Since her appointment as Culture Secretary in September, Nadine Dorries hasn’t been shy about making the odd enemy or two. Whether it’s the BBC, Channel 4, Facebook or Ofcom, the former nurse has shown no compunction in dishing out the harsh medicine during her seven months in office. And now it seems the Bedfordshire MP can add another name to her growing list of foes: Vladimir Putin’s kleptocratic Russian regime.
For Dorries is one of the more surprising additions on a list of 13 British politicians who have today been banned by Moscow over the UK’s ‘hostile’ stance on the war in Ukraine. While some of the names like Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss are perhaps not a surprise, few would have had Dorries, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps or Attorney General Suella Braverman at the top of any such list.
Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has also been slapped with a ban – despite remaining on the periphery of the UK’s response – while backbencher Theresa May will no doubt be baffled to receive such an accolade, nearly three years after leaving office. Chancellor Rishi Sunak, Home Secretary Priti Patel and Justice Secretary Dominic Raab are perhaps more understandable names, given their prominent positions in government. Kwasi Kwarteng and junior defence minister James Heappey complete the baker’s dozen of sanctioned stars. In a statement, Russia’s foreign ministry said:
In essence, the British leadership is deliberately aggravating the situation around Ukraine, pumping the Kyiv regime with lethal weapons and coordinating similar efforts on the part of Nato.
There’s a line for the next Conservative election broadcast. Like so many of Vladimir Putin’s attacks, Mr S suspects this one will only backfire. Given the attention lavished on the five Tory MPs sanctioned last year by China, the sanctioned politicians will no doubt be delighted to receive similar such recognition by another hostile power.
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