There is a widening gap between the Johnson government’s rhetoric about Ukraine and the reality of what is actually happening. Boris Johnson loves to claim British leadership in the various ways that the world is attempting to punish Russia for its illegal invasion while coping with the consequences. But in several key respects, Britain is either behind the curve or lost in a world of its own. Its conduct with respect to sanctions has been tardy and incoherent if not actually corrupt; in respect of refugees from Ukraine and their admission to Britain, its performance has been both cruel and laughable.

The Conservatives have been promising an Economic Crimes Bill for five years. Suddenly it was so urgent, it had to pass all its stages in the House of Commons on one day. But some of its measures will not reach their intended target – Russian oligarchs who own property in London – for six months, and Opposition attempts to reduce that to four weeks were defeated. Meanwhile, Britain’s capital city has gained an international reputation as Londongrad or Moscow-on-Thames, one of the easiest places in the world to launder dirty money. That is shameful.