THE husband of the British woman held in an Iranian prison called on Boris Johnson yesterday to step up diplomatic efforts to win her release, condemning the government’s “softly, softly” approach.

Richard Ratcliffe, whose wife Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been in custody since April last year on charges on spying and plotting to topple Iran’s government, met the Foreign Secretary to discuss her case.

Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe, her family and employer the Thomson Reuters Foundation insist that she was in Iran to introduce her young daughter to her parents.

But Mr Johnson muddied the waters on November 1 by telling MPs she was “simply training journalists,” a claim that Iran may use in support of a lengthier sentence.

He apologised for the distress caused — but not the substance of his remark — after facing widespread calls to resign.

Mr Ratcliffe is now pushing for diplomatic protection for his wife.

“I think it would send an important signal that the way Nazanin is being treated is unacceptable,” he said yesterday.

The Foreign Office said lawyers would discuss over the next fortnight whether such action would “have a positive impact.”

Mr Ratcliffe also said his wife’s health had deteriorated and she had recently found lumps in her breasts. He voiced fears that she was “on the verge of a nervous breakdown.”

The British ambassador in Tehran has pressed for a decision on Mr Ratcliffe’s application for a visa to visit his wife and ensure medical treatment for her.

Labour’s Tulip Siddiq, the family’s local MP who accompanied Mr Ratcliffe to the meeting, said: “The Foreign Secretary categorically said he would leave no stones unturned in this campaign to get my constituent home, and that’s what we are going to hold him to.”