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Transport for London (TfL) should have charged Russia Today (RT), a Kremlin-controlled TV channel, £310,000 for 270 adverts displayed across underground stations, it has been claimed.

However, a Freedom of Information request has reportedly revealed that the anti-Western news organisation was offered a knockdown price for their advertisements. Officials have refused to

reveal the extent of the discount offered to RT. A TfL spokesman said: “As with every single advert that runs on our network, the final cost was negotiated by our advertising partner to

maximise overall revenue for TfL. “This campaign received no preferential treatment.” The adverts displayed included a poster with the tagline: “The CIA calls us a 'propaganda

machine' – find out what we call the CIA”. Another advert joked about fears of Russian Government hacking. It said: “Watch RT and find out who we are planning to hack next”. Sadiq Khan

has faced backlash for letting the adverts be plastered across the London transport network. Speaking to the Sun the TfL spokesman added: “RT is licensed to operate in the UK by Ofcom but,

in light of the recent controversy surrounding RT, the Mayor has asked TfL to look again at whether the advertisements have breached the existing policy and if the policy should be updated

to address this type of advertising in the future.” The incident is an embarrassment for the London Mayor after his own party’s deputy leader wrote to the media watchdog Ofcom and the

Advertising Standards Authority to complain about the adverts. According to the Times, in a letter to Sharon White, head of Ofcom, Mr Watson said RT’s posters were an admission that the

network is “the mouthpiece” of Putin and the Kremlin. Conservative MP James Cleverly has also criticised Mr Khan for allowing the advert to be produced. He said: “A lot of commuters like me

found it pretty offensive being confronted with adverts for Putin’s propaganda channel, but I thought at least money was being generated to support our public transport system. “To find out

that we didn’t even maximise on that opportunity makes TfL’s mistake even worse.” The admittance by TfL they did not make RT pay full price for their adverts is the latest in a string of

criticisms of the London mayor’s transport decisions. Mr Khan also faced backlash for the decision to strip taxi firm Uber of their license and failing to fulfil his manifesto promise to

stop tube strikes.