RUSSIAN HAND IN BREXIT NOT PROBED

The UK government "actively avoided" looking into possible Russian interference in the landmark 2016 Brexit referendum.

That was the claim of one of the authors of a long-awaited report — published on Tuesday — into Moscow's influence on British politics, according to a report from Euronews.

Scottish MP Stewart Hosie, a member of the UK parliament's influential Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC), said it was "astonishing" the government had not looked into the possibility of interference, adding Downing Street had "actively avoided" doing so "because they did not want to know."

The ISC report said it was "difficult to prove" allegations that Russia sought to influence the referendum. But, it added, it was clear the government “was slow to recognise the existence of the threat" even after evidence emerged of Russian interference in US presidential elections and the Scottish independence referendum in 2014.

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Hosie said that Russia had tried to cast doubts on the veracity of the result of the referendum on Scottish secession in a bid to primarily undermine the UK in the eyes of the Russian populace.

"There has been no assessment of Russian interference in the EU referendum and this goes back to nobody wanting to touch the issue with a 10-foot pole," said Hosie.

"This is in stark contrast to the US response to reported interference in the 2016 presidential election.

"There should have been an assessment of Russian interference in the EU referendum and there must now be one, and the public must be told the results of that assessment."

The authors concluded that "serious questions needed to be asked” why ministers didn’t look into the issue.

The report also cited the murder of Alexander Litvinenko and the annexation of Crimea cited as "stark indicators" of Russia's lack of adherence to international law.