A man who “dreamt about being like James Bond” has been jailed after he was convicted of trying to spy for what he believed to be Russian intelligence service agents.

Howard Phillips, 66, from Harlow, Essex, intended to help two apparent Russian agents called “Sasha” and “Dima”, including by passing on personal information about former defence secretary Sir Grant Shapps , helping with travel logistics and booking hotels.

But “Dima” and “Sasha” were in fact undercover British intelligence officers and a jury found Phillips guilty of assisting a foreign intelligence service under the National Security Act.

Sentencing him to seven years in jail at Winchester Crown Court, judge Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb told him: “You were prepared to betray your country for money. I sentence you on the

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