TORY ministers should stop “banging the drum for war” against Russia and face up to the problems caused by their own policies, Stop the War Coalition national convener Lindsey German said today.

She hit back at a “bizarre” rant by Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson, who has claimed that Moscow is spying on this country’s energy supplies and could be planning to cause “total chaos” in Britain by “rip[ping] its infrastructure apart.”

This could cause “thousands and thousands of deaths,” Mr Williamson speculated.

Ms German retorted that Tory governments had already “done a good job disrupting our energy supply.

“They closed all the coal mines. They refuse to invest in cheap, safe energy,” she told the Morning Star.

Poorly maintained gas and electricity infrastructure had been privatised, leaving it in the hands of foreign companies.

“Yes, we should be worried about energy security because of our own government’s policies,” she said.

“Now we have a situation where most of Europe is actually dependent on Russian energy supplies and yet politicians speak as if Russia is an enemy and a threat. It does nobody any favours.”

Mr Williamson’s provocative article in the Daily Telegraph follows scaremongering by British army chief Sir Nick Carter, who claimed last weekend that Britain’s military was failing to keep up with Russia’s.

Moscow’s forces were “on Europe’s doorstep,” the general warned, referring to Russian troops stationed in Russia.