‘Spy assistant’ MP asked questions on UK nukes

Following the arrest of Katia Zatuliveter on suspicion of being a "sleeper" spy, fresh revelations about Lib Dem MP Mike Hancock and his glamorous 25-year-old Russian aide have been quick to emerge in the British press:
 
• Hancock's questions in Parliament are reported in the Guardian. In October he asked for details of stocks of uranium and other nuclear materials and for a "full historical inventory of the UK's nuclear arsenal". Both requests were rejected by defence secretary Liam Fox.
 
• The MP was ousted as head of the All-Party Group on Russia three months ago over concerns that he was too soft over the activities of President Medvedev's regime, the Times reports. Zatuliveter was secretary to the group but resigned when Hancock left his position as chairman. Chris Bryant, who replaced Hancock, said the Russian's decision to step down "just made me wonder about what her real interests in the group were".
 
• Concerns over Hancock's approach to Russia were raised in the Council of Europe, where the MP worked, the Times also reveals. Lib Dem leader Charles Kennedy was said to have been told Hancock's European colleagues felt Hancock was "in effect a lobbyist for the Kremlin".
 
• Hancock may have been the victim of a honeytrap operation, according to the Daily Mail, which suggests the 64-year-old Liberal Democrat was targeted on a trip to Russia. The Mail also states that Zatuliveter's father and sister are recruiting Russian students to come to Britain.
 
• The alleged spy was close to being offered a job with a top defence organisation in the summer, says the Mail – but she missed out on the position after security services told the firm they had concerns about the 25-year-old. The Times says MI5 had been watching Zatuliveter for "months".
 
• Zatuliveter was not the first assistant of Hancock to raise eyebrows, says the Telegraph. Mátyás Eörsi, a Hungarian MP who worked with Hancock on the Council for Europe, said the Lib Dem was often seen with women who were "all the same type: long-legged, good-looking blondes, never older than 25, fluent in French, English and often German, and with a higher education". Eörsi added: "Hancock was surrounded by very young, very beautiful, very attractive Russian and Ukranian girls. I don't exclude that these girls had a double mandate."
 
Hancock has been quick to defend Zatuliveter, who is being held in a detention centre, facing deportation. He said: "I have no reason to believe she did anything but act honourably during the time she was working for me. The security services haven't contacted me recently and they didn't give me any warning she was going to be detained."
 
There is no suggestion Hancock has acted improperly in this matter. ·