MP says he will not be intimidated after being banned from entering Russia

Bolton West MP Phil Brickell has been 'sanctioned' by the Kremlin following a recent visit to Ukraine

Chris Gee Local democracy reporter

18:12, 23 Apr 2025Updated 18:14, 23 Apr 2025

Bolton MP Phil Brickell (right) meets with a lieutenant from the Ukrainian Artillery Reconnaissance Brigade whil visiting the war-torn country

A Greater Manchester MP has been banned from entering Russia after being ‘sanctioned’ by Putin’s government.

Phil Brickell, who represents Bolton West after being elected to parliament in July 2024, appears on a ‘stop list’ of 21 MPs and members of the House of Lords published by Russia’s foreign ministry today (April 23).

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The statement, on the ministry’s official website te details ‘retaliatory personal sanctions against members of the UK Parliament’. In February, Mr Brickell travelled to Ukraine and where he said he spent ‘a few days living the daily reality for Ukrainians’.

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Speaking during the trip he said that the ‘UK must do everything to ensure that Ukraine is able to stay in the fight against Putin’. He added: “From meetings with Ukrainian politicians, soldiers, businesses and civil society groups, it is clear that their resolve remains unbroken.

“It must be Putin and his cronies who pay for the damage and destruction they have caused. “The Ukrainian diaspora both in Bolton and around the country also continue to need our support.

The Russian Foreign Ministry statement, said: “In response to London’s ongoing confrontational course, which includes efforts to demonize our country, actively fabricating anti-Russian narratives in order to reduce Moscow’s influence in the international arena, a decision has been made to include a number of members of the UK Parliament in the Russian ‘stop list’.

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“Russophobia and the desire to destroy Russian statehood remain integral elements of British foreign policy, which is completely subordinated to the task of inflicting as much damage as possible on our national interests.

“We are closely monitoring such rhetoric and drawing the necessary conclusions.” The ministry said work on expanding the Russian ‘stop list’ will continue.

After the list was published, Mr Brickell, said: “I’ve been to Ukraine – I’ve seen the death and destruction Putin has wrought there over the last three years. “So if he thinks that sanctioning myself and colleagues will get us to shut up he has another thing coming.

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“Putin and his cronies must pay for the crimes they have committed.”

Below is a list of British nationals published by the Russian Foreign Ministry who are ‘banned from entering the Russian Federation’.

1. David Patrick Paul ALTON, Member of the House of Lords;

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2. Charles Edward Raymond BANNER, Member of the House of Lords;

3. Kevan David JONES, Member of the House of Lords;

4. Ross John KEMPSELL, Member of the House of Lords;

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5. Jeremy PURVIS, Member of the House of Lords;

6. Julie Elizabeth SMITH, Member of the House of Lords;

7. Johanna BAXTER, Member of the House of Commons, Labour Party;

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8. Philip Michael BRICKELL, Member of the House of Commons, Labour Party;

9. Stephen Patrick GETHINS, Member of the House of Commons, Scottish National Party;

10. Alexander Morrison CARMICHAEL, Member of the House of Commons, Liberal Democrat Party;

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11. Christopher Austin Francis COGHLAN, Liberal Democrat MP

12. Helen Elaine MAGUIRE, Liberal Democrat MP

13. Blair MCDOUGALL, Labour MP

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14. James Neville MACCLEARY, Liberal Democrat MP

15. Michael Peter MARTIN, Liberal Democrat MP

16. Manuella PERTEGHELLA, Liberal Democrat MP

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17. Juan Timothy Charles ROCA, MP, Labour Party;

18. Jeevun Gurpreet Singh SANDER, MP, Labour Party;

19. Aaron Cameron THOMAS, MP, Liberal Democrat;

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20. William Paul FORSTER, MP, Liberal Democrat;

21. Richard James SHANNON, MP, Democratic Unionist Party.