The Russians blocked Donald Trump from appointing Mitt Romney as his secretary of state, the former British spy Christopher Steele reportedly claimed in an unreleased memo.

The Kremlin intervened through “unspecified channels” to make sure Mr Romney was not given the job, according to the secret memo, the contents of which have been reported by The New Yorker.

Mr Steele, the ex-MI6 officer, reportedly wrote the memo in late November 2016 – after Mr Trump’s election victory – but it is yet to be published, unlike others he wrote before the vote.

Mr Romney, who called Russia the greatest threat to America in his 2012 presidential bid, met Mr Trump a number of times after the US election, fueling speculation he could become secretary of state.

However the role eventually went to Rex Tillerson, the former CEO of ExxonMobil who had a long-standing relationship with the Kremlin through his career in oil.

The memo was reportedly one of the topics which Mr Steele discussed with investigators working for Robert Mueller, the special counsel looking into Russian election meddling.