As many as 60 Russian spies are operating in Britain, virtually unchallenged by a domestic intelligence service preoccupied by the threat from Islamic extremism, a lawmaker told a debate Wednesday on relations between Moscow and London.
Chris Bryant, a legislator with Tony Blair's governing Labour party who convened and led the session, said Russian authorities had shown a "casual disregard" for the deaths of journalists critical of the Kremlin.
Outside analysts said Bryant's figure seemed high, though British intelligence officials have expressed concern about espionage.
Lawmakers held the debate at the House of Commons ancillary chamber Westminster Hall following the poisoning death last Thursday of ex-Soviet spy Alexander Litvinenko, whose body was contaminated with high doses of polonium-210 -- a rare radioactive element usually manufactured in specialized nuclear facilities.
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