TORY and Labour calls for Nicola Sturgeon to condemn her predecessor over his links to Russian state broadcaster RT have been described as a “smokescreen” by the SNP.

The First Minister’s party also pointed out that she had criticised Alex Salmond’s choice of network “literally the day after” the show was announced back in 2017.

The row follows the publication of the Intelligence and Security Committee’s long-awaited report into Russian interference in British politics. The committee said RT, formerly known as Russia Today, put out “serious distortions” along with fellow state-owned broadcaster Sputnik.

The report was also brutally damning of successive UK governments for “actively avoiding” probing Russian interference in British politics, while accepting huge donations from Russian donors.

It was also critical of the House of Lords, where members don’t have to declare as much detail about their outside earnings.

Yesterday, a spokesperson for Labour leader Keir Starmer said his party completely condemned RT and advised “the First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to do the same”.

“She should make a public statement condemning it,” they said.

The spokesperson added: “[Keir] would certainly say it is the wrong thing to do [to appear on RT].

“As Keir said, no member of the frontbench has been on Russia Today since Keir was put in charge and it is certainly not anything we

would endorse.”

Tory MP David Mundell said it was “abundantly clear that the RT network, controlled by the Russian state, is used to disrupt and destabilise other countries”.

He added: “As the Intelligence and Security Committee Report shows, the Russian state is a serious threat to our security and democracy so is it astonishing that Alex Salmond is still taking money from them.

“In the context of this damning report, there can be no justification for a former First Minister and leader of the SNP, and advocate of independence, to be working for the Russian state.”

He said it was “concerning” that “so many nationalists” were unwilling “to call out this behaviour despite saying they have concerns about Russia”.

He added: “After the report was published we should have heard the First Minister speak out, so I now call on her and other leading nationalists to condemn Alex Salmond’s ongoing relationship with the Russian state in the strongest possible terms.”

An SNP spokesperson hit back at the criticism: “The First Minister stood up at a press conference literally the day after the Alex Salmond show was announced – three years ago – and made her views clear.

“This is little more than a smokescreen to try and conceal the devastating criticisms by the ISC report of the Tory Government’s negligence in failing to even assess the level of Russian interference into the EU referendum.

“If Labour and the Tories really want to move things forward then perhaps they should be looking into unelected Labour and Tory Lords’ business links with Russia, which was one of the most serious conclusions from this report.”

When details of the show first became public Sturgeon was critical, saying Salmond’s “choice of channel would not have been my choice”.

She added: “Of course, Alex is not currently an elected politician and is free to do as he wishes, but had I been asked, I would have advised against RT and suggested he seek a different channel to air what I am sure will be an entertaining show.”

Meanwhile, Boris Johnson was accused of deliberately “sitting” on the findings of the report for 10 months.

At yesterday’s Prime Minister’s Questions, Starmer said the delay had left a serious gap in the UK’s defences.

The Government had “taken its eye off the ball – arguably it wasn’t even on the pitch,” he added.

Johnson accused the Labour leader of trying to undermine the 2016 Brexit referendum.