The Chief Medical Officer for England, Prof Dame Sally Davies, has advised anyone who visited the Zizzi restaurant or The Mill pub in Salisbury last Sunday or Monday to decontaminate their property as a precaution against it carrying traces of nerve agent. This was used against Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Julia. They remain in comas and in critical condition.
A policeman, Det Sgt Nick Bailey, who was the first to aid them is now conscious and talking to his family. The damp weather last Sunday may have helped to reduce his exposure as water helps to break down and dilute nerve agents.
The advice to wash possessions applies to anyone in either venue after 13:30 GMT on Sunday 4 March.
People who were at either venue before closure on Monday are advised to do the following:
- Clothes should be washed, ideally in a washing machine
- Clothes which cannot be washed, for example if they need dry cleaning, should be double bagged in plastic until further notice
- Mobile phones, handbags and other electronic items should be wiped with baby wipes, which should be bagged in plastic and put in the bin
- Other items such as jewellery and glasses should be washed with warm water and detergent
- Hands should be washed after the handling of any items suspected of being contaminated.
Dame Sally emphasised that these measures are a precaution and a “belt and braces” approach to ensuring the safety of those potentially exposed at the two locations. Although the agent has been identified, its details are not being released by the police for operational reasons. Up to 180 military personnel with chemical weapons training have been called in to help recover evidence and help decontaminate the locations and the ambulance(s) used to transport the victims to hospital.
Today, the main Labour Opposition spokeman on finance, the Shadow Chancellor John McDonald, has called for a boycott of appearing on Russia Today, the Kremlin propaganda arm.
He said RT's coverage "goes beyond objective journalism" and it was "right", after events in Salisbury, that Labour MPs did not appear on it.
A party spokesman said: "We are keeping the issue under review".
Mr McDonnell also backed visa sanctions against Russians suspected of corruption.
Chancellor Philip Hammond suggested a deal could be reached with Labour to bring in sanctions.
But he rejected a call from the widow of murdered Alexander Litvinenko for the Conservatives to pay back more than £820,000 donated by Russian-linked business people since Prime Minister Theresa May came to power.