Plaid should keep RT appearances under review, says Price

Plaid Cymru politicians should "keep under review" their appearances on Kremlin-backed broadcaster RT, a senior politician from the party has said.

Adam Price is among those in Plaid who have appeared on the channel.

There have been calls for its licence to be reviewed after the prime minister said it was highly likely Russia was behind the poisoning of Sergei Skripal in Salisbury.

Mr Price said it was for Ofcom to decide whether RT was "fit and proper".

Tory MP David Davies and UKIP Wales leader Neil Hamilton - who have also appeared on the channel - said they would refrain from doing so following the recent events.

Other Welsh politicians who have made appeared on the channel include Nathan Gill, the UKIP MEP for Wales, and former Labour leader Lord Kinnock.

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Cardiff South and Penarth Labour MP Stephen Doughty has called for the organisation's licence to broadcast in the UK to be reviewed.

His comments came after shadow chancellor John McDonnell said it was right Labour MPs did not appear on it.

Adam Price said he is sure Ofcom "will be reflecting on what has happened"

Plaid MPs Hywel Williams, Liz Saville-Roberts, Jonathan Edwards have been interviewed on RT, which has a UK offshoot that broadcasts on Freeview, as has Plaid AM Simon Thomas.

Asked if Plaid politicians should cease from making further appearances on the channel, Mr Price said: "It's something that we have to keep under review.

"We have a regulator, I think it is proper that it is ultimately for the regulator to decide on whether broadcasters are fit and proper.

"I'm sure that they will be reflecting on what has happened."

Mr Price, who himself appeared on the channel last year to talk about the political situation in Catalonia, said he has not been paid by the organisation.

"I would have probably done interviews for Radio Moscow, putting out a message... and I would have been attacked by right wing politicians and possibly the BBC for doing so then.

"I'm not sure the BBC is particularly impartial at times, but I still appear on the BBC," he said.

"My own view is that while they still have a licence as a broadcast, then my duty as an elected politician is to put my case in any forum that is legitimate under the rules.

"Because otherwise there are very few media outlets that I feel completely comfortable with if I'm making a personal judgement.

"What do you do? You are removing yourself from a public forum."

David Davies said he had been paid for four appearances on the channel

Monmouth MP David TC Davies has been paid for four appearances on News Thing - a satirical news programme on the channel - for £750 an appearance, according to the register for members interests.

He said he "won't knowingly appear on RT after what happened in Salisbury given the almost certain link" with Russia.

Mr Davies said the payments came from an independent production company that also makes programmes for the BBC, and that the payments were fully registered at the time.

He said he had also appeared on RT on a number of occasions without payment. Mr Price said he had not been paid by the channel.

Mr Hamilton said he would not appear on the channel again "in the immediate future".

"I've only twice I think done interviews for Russia Today over all the years its been in existence. It's not likely to be a significant problem for me," he said.

"In the current circumstances until we know exactly who is responsible for this outrage then overwhelming suspicion is going to fall on Russia. We will see what they're going to say in the course of today."

The UKIP Wales leader said he was paid to appear on the channel, but would not talk about individual fees.

UKIP MEP Nathan Gill's Twitter account lists at least seven appearances on the channel the politician has made in the past year.

He said: "I've appeared on RT a number of occasions in the form of unpaid current affairs interviews where my approach has always been to treat broadcasters with parity rather than establish preferences and vetoes.

"I will of course be following closely developments in our foreign relations with Russia but will not necessarily commit myself to a boycott.

"There are many state owned foreign television networks that prospective interviewees could and perhaps should equally refuse on the same grounds, and yet do not."

'Implications'

An Ofcom spokesperson said: "The Russian news channel RT broadcasts in the UK under licences issued by Ofcom as the broadcasting regulator.

"Ofcom has an ongoing duty to be satisfied that all broadcast licensees are fit and proper to hold a licence.

"We have heard the Prime Minister's statement in the House of Commons this afternoon and we await her further statement on Wednesday. We will then consider the implications for RT's broadcast licences."