daniel sandford, bbc news, salisbury.p hammond, has delivered an upbeat assessment of the uk economy, claiming there's "light at the end of the tunnel," and hinting at possible public spending increases in the autumn. but labour accused the chancellor of "astounding complacency" and ignoring a public sector funding crisis. here's our political editor, laura kuennsberg. is there anybody out there? number 11 didn't want us to pay that much attention. no fuss, no frills. reporter: do you have good news today, chancellor? only the chancellor slipping off to work. the speaker: statement, the chancellor of the exchequer. but what was this, a cheery philip hammond rushing to his place? if there are any eeyores in the chamber, they're over there. i, meanwhile, am at my most positively tigger—like today. not much has changed from the world outside. true, the economy will grow a little bit faster. the debt will start to fall, just. the day to day deficit, remember that, it's gone. but compared to other countries, the economy is slu

now the latest from salisbury. duncan kennedy is in salisbury for us. day. how would you assess the day's proceedings? it is nonstop. this police operation continues all over the place. not so much in the city centre today, the tent behind me with the attack happened, the restau ra nt, me with the attack happened, the restaurant, the pub nearby, sergei skripal‘s house, the cemetery where his late wife is buried, the scene today was five miles from salisbury where it looked as if experts are taking away at a truck vehicle. sometimes we stumble across these developments and sometimes we don't. there is one going on in salisbury city centre, in a supermarket, a tea m city centre, in a supermarket, a team of experts, who knows from which agency, arrived one hour ago and started looking at vehicles, objects on the ground, and gain some wearing biohazard objects on the ground, and gain some wearing biohaza rd uniforms objects on the ground, and gain some wearing biohazard uniforms as they have to do in case there are any issues among the objects they examine.

i feel very safe in salisbury. assume that everybody has got it under control. so we can actually find out exactly what's been happening. dealing with this attack. this afternoon, there will be a second meeting. will give an update on the progress of their investigation. but very little information is being shared with the public. andy moore, bbc news. has been speaking to the bbc. described how she dealt with her father being arrested in russia. translation: she never shared her problems, never. on all the tv channels. everyone was shocked. her from the best side. she hasn't done anything to deserve to die like this. i hope everything will be ok. i will go to church and pray. talk to our correspondent sarah corker, who was in salisbury. corker, who was in salisbury. yulia's decision, having come to england, to then return home. england, to then return home. about his work as a spy, a suspected double agent. double agent. living in the ukfora number of yea rs. living in the ukfora number of years. years. hospital,

she came to salisbury before that dashes up as she came to salisbury and before that he met up with amber the news has come through from health officials that the condition is not serious. that will be encouraging, not only to his family and colleagues but to all of those in this investigation that his condition does seem to be improving. no word yet on today's that on about when he might be leaving hospital. that may be a while yet but his condition is not serious and sergeant paley is in a stable condition in hospital. as duncan suggests, we are expecting a further update round about 5:30pm for the latter is when we believe we will hear more. more on this story after half—past, hopefully. there are many elements to that story. meanwhile, russia's ambassador to the uk has accused theresa may of having no proof for her accusation that moscow was involved in the nerve agent attack in salisbury. alexander ya kovenko also repeated a suggestion that the substance used to poison a former russian spy and his daughter came from the porton down research facility, which is only a few miles from sa

daniel sandford, bbc news, salisbury.donald trump and theresa may have spoken on the phone today. the prime ministers as russia must provide an ambiguous a nswe i’s. russia must provide an ambiguous answers. the eu says it is ready to support britain in pursuit of justice. with more on that, our diplomatic correspondent, james landale. it began as a brutal attack on the streets of salisbury, the poisoning of a former russian intelligence officer and his daughter, that the uk blames on russia. but it's become a global diplomatic row, with britain looking for allies in its confrontation with moscow. british ministers meeting again to discuss the case have given the kremlin until midnight to explain how a nerve agent developed in russia ended up in britain. if the response isn't credible, they are promising extensive measures against russia. this is a brazen attempt to murder innocent people on uk soil. policeman still in hospital, overwhelmingly likely or highly likely that the russian state was involved, and the use of thi

daniel sandford, bbc news, salisbury.t from our correspondents in moscow and in downing street, but first our security correspondent gordon corera is with me. a sense of how challenging this investigation is now? it has been a very challenging investigation, more challenging i'm told even than a counter terrorism investigation, because of the the forensics and the contamination. it was only on saturday night that they identified the nerve agent and hence the warnings to the public. and we got a sense of broadening line of inquiry for the police. there have been questions about deaths of russians in the last few years. today the home secretary said she had asked the police and mi5 to look at those to see if there was suspicions. in the afternoon we learned the police we re the afternoon we learned the police were investigating what they called an unexplained death in new malden south of london. we understand that is nicholai glusha kov. south of london. we understand that is nicholai glushakov. he was a russian businessman

duncan kennedy is in salisbury. will remember just you will rememberjust over two mark joyce ago, public health england we re joyce ago, public health england were telling people that had been three zizzi restaurant or the mel pocock, to take their close to the dry cleaner, put them in a bag or wash them. now they are saying if you had been to those establishments and you have not washed your clothes, you should do so immediately. for people with dry cleaning, they say call the council and the council will come over, and ta ke and the council will come over, and take the clothes away and destroy them. that is the advice being given. they will say people will be compensated for that. they say tonight that while there is no immediate health risk it is possible, but unlikely, that any substance that has come into contact with clothing or belongings could be present in minute amounts, and therefore contaminated your skin. so, even though we are nearly three weeks into this incident, public health england are still advis

the attack on a former russian spy in salisbury. theresa may says sergei skripal and his daughter were poisoned by a military grade nerve agent of a type developed by russia. this attempted murder using a weapons—grade nerve agent in a british town was notjust a crime against the skripals. it was an indiscriminate and reckless act against the united kingdom. as investigations continue, the russian ambassador is summoned and told to explain by tomorrow how the chemical weapon found its way to salisbury. he brought laughter to millions — tributes to ken dodd, the last of the great music hall variety comedians, who has died aged 90. jail for the teenager who carried out a string of acid attacks on moped riders to steal their scooters. sky's football pundit jamie carragher is suspended after he spits at a teenage girl and her family. microplastics, not visible to the naked eye, but this river in greater manchester is found to be the most polluted so far in the world. coming up on sportsday later in the hour on bbc news — no british meda

daniel sandford reporting from salisbury.dent, chris mason, told me a little earlier about the mood in the house of commons after mps had been told by the prime minister that it was ‘highly likely‘ that russia was behind the poison attack in salisbury. what stood out today was the real sense of occasion, the gravity of the occasion. that was emphasised in the occasion. that was emphasised in the contributions from across the house, yes, as james mentioned there wasjeremy house, yes, as james mentioned there was jeremy corbyn house, yes, as james mentioned there wasjeremy corbyn ‘s contribution relating to the contributions from russia that the conservative party has had in donations in recent yea rs. has had in donations in recent years. that led to jeering and cheering and shouts of shame! and discussed! from backbenchers but save for that, a lot of the contributions from the front and back benches were focused on the specifics of what is going on in salisbury. yes, mr corbyn also talked about that as well. i think the most

and now i'm reading every day news from salisbury day news from salisbury and try to understand whatppened and who might be behind of this crime. of course, russia has a very bad reputation now. and everything that's happened in the world — doping in sport, or involvement in an election — immediately, russia in the front of all minds. but in this case, i would like to be very serious and take all the evidence and maybe some time to provide the truth. and was it exactly russia, or any other country, behind of this crime? for us, it was almost ten years to provide this whole fact and evidence. and it was all proof. and i want the same case to be made in the same way. it would be not politically motivated. and only after proper investigation, we could say exactly who behind of this crime. marina litvinenko. in our merseyside studios the former uk ambassador to russia, sir tony brenton. studios the former uk ambassador to russia, sirtony brenton. let's studios the former uk ambassador to russia, sir tony brenton. let's deal with those issues around the litvinenko murder. you were ambassa

it has been great to meet some tourists here in salisbury, people coming to salisbury and still enjoyinge's heading towards the mill pub, which was another location for a sergei skripal and his daughter. we can't go too much further, because that picture will break up. we will hold it there, because we will lose that signal. mrs may able to come here, see for herself first—hand. she is just to come here, see for herself first—hand. she isjust going into a shop there, by the looks of it, possibly to talk to local businesses and also to reassure local people that, as boris johnson and also to reassure local people that, as borisjohnson and others have been seen throughout all of theirs, the risks to the public as a result of this nerve agent is low. although they might have seen people with hans kem sits on and everything else around the city, there is no need to worry about that, it is standard operating procedure. shall we go standard operating procedure. shall wegoa standard operating procedure. shall we go a little closer, steve, in case we can get a signal? please be with that picture

we're going to talk now tojerry smith, who is in salisbury.ernational chemical weapons convention. can we underline here how high the stakes are in terms of the interaction between russia and the interaction between russia and the other nation states that are now demanding more clarification. certainly in regards to the chemical weapons convention this is pretty significant. now into what we call a chapter nine element, where basically nation states as in the uk and russia are now trying to clarify the situation. this is what russia has been pushing for. what form would that clarification take? well, i understand that the pm is instructing samples to go to the 0p cw, where they will be taken to designated laboratories, they are anonymous laboratories and potentially other laboratories around the world that are designated approved and they will have anonymous tests done on them to essentially free if the conclusion is drawn the same as has been found in the uk. —— to see if the conclusion is drawn. the other element today is the fact that russi

and it's actually only eight miles from salisbury.g that porton down is responsible for this nerve agent attack? i don't know, i don't know. immediately afterwards, on the same programme, this was the foreign secretary's riposte. this is not the response of a country that really believes itself to be innocent. their response has been a sort of mixture of smug sarcasm and denial, obfuscation and delay. and with 23 diplomats due to leave the russian embassy this week, after being expelled as spies, the foreign secretary made his most direct accusation yet that russia has been doing recent nerve agent research. we actually had evidence within the last ten years that russia has not only been investigating the delivery of nerve agents for the purposes of assassination, but has also been creating and stockpiling novichoks. however, the foreign secretary then had to concede that a wife of a former minister under vladimir putin had paid £160,000 in a conservative party auction to play tennis with him. did the tennis game actually happen? it d

and tom is in salisbury now.ople there expect to see over the next few days, or is it weeks? well, i think it is going to go on and on. this has been escalating since the incident on sunday evening. counter—terrorism officers have been brought in, confirmation of the use of a nerve agent. and right now, the military on the streets and the hospital campus, where i can see on the other side, they are covering a police car that has been at the hospital since sunday. we believe that is a police car that was driven to the hospital after the incident and which may be contaminated. i say we believe, because unusually in this case, very little is being confirmed by counter—terrorism officers running the investigation. amber rudd said, give us space, we will get to the bottom of this, and we will find the fa cts . bottom of this, and we will find the facts. it is important that they do because there are huge international implications if this is some sort of a plot to kill a russian dissident. we know where that leads. th

a reminder of our main story — the primers to visit salisbury —— the prime minister visit salisbury forpy. that's all from the bbc news at one so it's goodbye from me — and on bbc one we nowjoin the bbc‘s news teams where you are. good afternoon, i'm hugh woozencroft with your latest sport. day three of the cheltenham festival is just getting under way. there are two big races this afternoon, but the festival is still coming to terms with the fact that it's all—time leading jockey ruby walsh won't be playing any further part. lizzie greenwood hughes is there for us. no ruby, that is a big glass, for the fans? he has been the champion jockey coco date for the last bout yea rs jockey coco date for the last bout years —— last five years. he has only been back a week, because he broke his leg in november and that has reopened the wound. his trainer willie mullins today said he might well be back for punchestown in april. he may not be out for the entire season, but is not taking pa rt entire season, but is not taking part today. with a diverse long list of injuries, he has broken his leg fo

there has been talk of it from the bishop of salisbury who ina it from the bishop of salisbury who inelt the city had been violated and he was saying that it has left people asking a lot of questions about who they can trust. what is happening here is designed to be a show of unity and defiance over this easter weekend. for businesses it has been a difficult period because some of them are reporting that trade has shocked by 80% because a lot of visitors have decided they do not wa nt to visitors have decided they do not want to come into the city and risk it. the government has pledged money to get businesses back on their feet and deal with the situation but worry from people outside obesity. seeing people taking part in something like this today, people saying life is going on as normal despite their concerns and closely monitoring the latest news from the hospital. somejoy at monitoring the latest news from the hospital. some joy at the news we got yesterday. the message from here is business will go on as normal. thousands release from police custody without bail conditions attac

we're live from salisbury.out about the man who, we understand, it chose salisbury for its low crime rate and his daughter who moved freely between russia and the uk. so as the counter terrorism unit in the met takes over the case, what do we actually know? as the foreign secretary talks about russia as a ‘malign force' on the international scene, the former spy and his daughter fight for their lives. we'll be hearing from the chair of the foreign affairs select committee, and the former security minister baroness neville jones. also tonight, the bank of england chief economist on addressing its elitist past? i was probably one of the first vintages that did not go to oxford or cambridge. that did not go to a public school. that might come at things from slightly different angles. and this... and hundreds of videos. and his 33—year—old daughter yulia, are still in a critical condition in hospital in salisbury. in hospital too is one of the emergency services personnel who attended the scene when they were found

and they have spread to other areas of salisbury, into this car park.n further activity further afield in this area around seven miles from the city, it is not clear why. all this while detectives work to find out who was behind the attack and how and where sergei skripal and his daughter yulia ingested the nerve agent. they remain ina ingested the nerve agent. they remain in a critical condition in hospital. should you have acted sooner hospital. should you have acted sooner to alert the public? this morning, ministers arrived in downing street for a key meeting with senior officials. the question of who was behind the attack on how to respond high on the agenda and already, some politicians are expecting the prime minister to accuse russia. we are expecting the prime minister to make an announcement soon. and frankly i would be surprised if she did not point the finger at the kremlin. today, whereof the church of the bbc to speak to the russian president himself. president putin, bbc news, is russia behind the poisoning of sergei skripal? translation:

duncan kennedy is in salisbury. what are they saying? two weeks ago the advice from public health england was anyone who was in zizi's restaurant or the mill power was for people to dump their clothing or bag it. now they say anyone who was in zizi's or the pub on monday the 11th of march or the 5th of march should wash their clothing immediately. as for dry cleaning, do not dry clean it. call the council. they will send someone over, take away the dry cleaning item and destroy it. public helping them say people will be compensated for that. while there is no immediate health risk, it is possible but unlikely that any substance that has come into contact with clothing or belongings could still be present in minute amounts and therefore contaminate your skin. so, nearly three weeks after this incident, the advice from public health england continues to evolve. thank you. a convoy of vehicles left the british embassy in moscow this morning, as the deadline for the expulsion of british diplomats was reached. president putin has called on th

earlier today in salisbury, the home secretary amber rudd attended an easter service at salisbury cathedral a sign of solidarity with the city. the condition of yulia skripal, the daughter of the former russian spy, is now improving. she's no longer in a critical condition and the bbc understands she is conscious and talking. herfather, sergei skripal, is still in a critical but stable condition. yulia is much younger than her father and the younger you are, whether you're poisoned or you have burns or you break bones, the more likely you are to make a quicker recovery. it's also quite possible she had a smaller dose than her father and the dose is very important. forensics tests have shown the highest concentration of the nerve agent was found on the front door of the former spy‘s home. how it got there is what detectives are still trying to work out. our correspondent paul adams is in moscow, where the russian foreign ministry is continuing its tit—for—tat expulsions of western diplomats that acted in support of britain. it's been a steady procession of ambassadors at the foreign ministry

and looking at the salisbury poisoning.uropean sovereignty.

it agrees moscow was behind the salisbury attack.ch of international norms and agreements. this is unacceptable. it has no place in a civilised world. tonight, russia is feeling increasingly isolated and in a new cold war it blames on the west. in a moment, we‘ll speak to our security correspondent, gordon corera. but first, live to washington and our north america editor, jon sopel. a notable change of tone in washington, what is behind it? well, you could argue that theresa may has been more successful than the us intelligence services because she has convinced donald trump that the russians have been up to no good and for the past 15 months, donald trump has been very wary, almost openin trump has been very wary, almost open in refusing to accept that. what was striking was the statement issued last night by the white house press secretary, full square behind theresa may and the need to expel the diplomats and the belief that russia was behind it. then the most unlikely thing this morning, a joint letter signed by trump, the leade

and it's only eight miles from salisbury.ot suggesting that porton down is responsible for business agent?” don't know. but theresa may's government got solid support from the labour shadow chancellor after criticism ofjeremy corbyn is more questioning approach. putin has questions to answer because this is likely it could be a state execution. but in this country we don't leap to conclusions about the evidence. as the investigation goes on in the next days the government will focus on broadening international backing from britain's stance. 0n international backing from britain's stance. on tuesday ministers on the international security council would discuss whether to launch a second round of measures against moscow at the risk of an endless tit—for—tat. whatever precisely happened in salisbury, one consequence is that russia's international reputation, already very fragile, does seem to have been weakened still further. britain is having little trouble gathering in strong messages of support from overseas, although action

duncan kennedy is in salisbury.ailey and his wife have both issued statements, what more did they have to say? yes, the owner, 18 days after this incident, this is the news that sergeant bailey, his wife sarah, their children and all those connected with them while waiting for, then you see is going to be discharged. as you heard there, sergeant bailey said in his statement that this was the real, com pletely statement that this was the real, completely surreal, saying that there were no words to describe how he feels and that he's just a normal person but that life will never be the same again. his wife sarah said this had been the most traumatic eventin this had been the most traumatic event in their lives. butjust to cap off what daniel was just saying there, the other bit of news this afternoon is that sergei and yulia skripal, as the hospitaljust told us skripal, as the hospitaljust told us in the past few minutes, well they remain in a critical but stable condition. the hospital say so far as sergeant bailey i

daniel sandford, bbc news, salisbury. has made his first public comments about the attack. he said as soon as the facts were straight, america would condemn russia or whoever it may be. and the european union has said it's ready to support britain "in pursuit ofjustice". here's our diplomatic correspondent james landale. it began as a brutal attack on the streets of salisbury, the poisoning of a former russian intelligence officer and his daughter, that the uk blames on russia. but it's become a global diplomatic row, with britain looking for allies in its confrontation with moscow. british ministers meeting again to discuss the case have given the kremlin until midnight to explain how a nerve agent developed in russia ended up in britain. if the response is implausible, they are promising extensive measures against russia. this is a brazen attempt to murder innocent people on uk soil. policemen still in hospital, overwhelmingly likely or highly likely the russian state was involved, and the use of this nerve agent would

or that is taking place in salisbury.for a response, but at the moment we are focused on the investigation itself. 0k will stop happy with that? so, we're pointedly home secretary with their lives the slightly uncertain questioning. but the point she was making were quite clear, expressing her enormous gratitude to the emergency services and their commitment. and to her details and terms of the 200 witnesses, the 240 pieces of evidence in the more than 250 counterterrorism police. giving the police space to get on with their job. keeping people safe. collecting all the evidence so that we can see where this should lead. a clear, firm intention to get to the bottom of who is behind that. but no details on that at this point. let's go back to emma vardy, who is in downing street. emma. that's right. i don't think amber rudd prospects they met there really gave us many clues as to whether the investigation is moving forward. and any particularly significant way. whether we are any closer to establishing who was behind this p

kathryn stancyzyn reports from salisbury. a city under a watchful eye macro.skripal were found collapsed on a bench in a salisbury park, the authorities are trying to piece together what happened. last night, traces of the nerve agent used in the attack were discovered in the italian restaurant they had eaten it. now hundreds of people who spent time in the restau ra nt people who spent time in the restaurant or the mill pub last sunday and monday i been told to ta ke sunday and monday i been told to take precautions. wash clothing you haven't already. ideally in the washing machine. any items which cannot be washed and would normally be dry cleaned, should be double bagged in plastic untilfurther information is available. white personal items such as phones and handbags with baby wipes and dispose of them in plastic bags in the bin. watch hard items such as jewellery and spectacles with warm water and detergent. exactly where this attack took place, what the nerve agent used was, our line is still being followed. caution has been written about jumping to conc

earlier we spoke with tom burridge in salisbury.is is an international organisation, britain and russia both signatories to the organisation for the prohibition of chemical weapons and sending over a delegation, we understand, they will go to porton down, ministry of defence‘s labs, where british scientists have already done tests on samples of the nerve agent used on sergei skripal and yulia skripal. and the idea is that the international the idea is that the international organisation will take away a sample, possibly back to the hague, where the headquarters are, or another country, to independents authorities to independently verify whether the nerve agent is part of this group known as novichok, believed to have been formulated by the soviets in the late 1980s and early 1990s. the claim by the home secretary is very interesting, the british government saying they have evidence that russia has been developing of a jock nerve agents within the last decade. joining me now is tonia samsonova — the london correspondent for the echo

our home affairs correspondent dominic casciani is in salisbury.ink the people of salisbury will have heard enough to allay theirfears? will have heard enough to allay their fears? it's difficult to tell what i can say that one man i spoke to today who was in the mill pub on sunday, recalls seeing sergei skripal and is furious because his question and that of many others would be, why weren't we told this sooner? we tried to clarify in that press c0 nfe re nce sooner? we tried to clarify in that press conference exactly when public health england receive the information that led to this new advice today. we didn't get an a nswer advice today. we didn't get an answer on that but we got clarity about what they think, for them it is about potential low risk from prolonged exposure over the long term, so for instance, if somebody had a mobile phone in the pub and they put it on the table on the monday after sergei skripal was affected, that phone could have picked up a trace of nerve agent if there was nerve agent on the table and that is what the word

when i visited those guarding the scenes in salisbury la st guarding the scenes in salisbury last fridayial constables who would come in doing extra hours in order to relieve their full—time colleagues. i would like to report my thanks to the police, all partners and the public for their tremendous support over the past week. and to finish, i would like to convey my best wishes and prayers to detective sergeant nick bailey and his family at this very difficult time. thank you. why has it taken your week to issue the advice that you have two 500 people who could have potentially, to co nta ct people who could have potentially, to contact with the substance, people who will be feeling very u nsettled ? you will realise i devoted my slot here really largely to the public and we recognise that. however, it is really important to understand the general public should not be concerned. on the evidence currently there is a very low risk. the group that you are relating to and anyone who may have visited the pub and restau ra nt who may have visited the pub and restaurant during that time. there

sarah corker, bbc news, in salisbury. to our political correspondent emma vardy, who's outside the cabinet office, where that cobra meeting is taking place. any news? well, the home secretary, amber rudd, is chairing the meeting which we understood got under way just after three o'clock. we are expecting a statement from amber ruddin expecting a statement from amber rudd in the next hour or so, which may provide some new answers to the many ongoing questions surrounding this case. at the cobra meeting there will be updates given to government ministers from police, the intelligence services, but also from public health england the ministry of defence, that is on the work they're doing with the troops that have been deployed in this case. ben wallace, the security minister, speaking to the bbc this morning, described this as a very brazenly committed, nasty crime. he said there are range of responses that the uk can take to river ouse binders, but he stressed that investigators must first gather the right sort of evidence

to the salisbury attack, so our pa rty‘s commitment response to the salisbury attack, so our party'sefines our whole approach to politics and government. we in this party are the heirs of a proud tradition, underpinned by enduring principles. first, our belief in security. we wa nt first, our belief in security. we want everyone to have the economic security of a good job, a decent wage and a home to call their own. we wa nt wage and a home to call their own. we want people to have the personal security of a great national health service that is there for us when we need it. and we are the party of national security council, backing our armed forces, our police and our security services who protect us every day. as well as for security, we stand... studio: surgeries are made is moving on and continuing in her address to tory party activists —— theresa may is moving on, but we wa nt to —— theresa may is moving on, but we want to get that sense of her view on the state of play with russia following today's development. with me is our political correspondent nick eardley. she did say "w

tom symonds, bbc news, salisbury.l is still fighting for his life in hospital alongside his daughter yulia. he came to the uk in 2008 as part of a spy swap with russia. but what led him to betray his country and seek refuge here? 0ur security correspondent, gordon corera, has been given exclusive access to details and photos from his past. the man behind the story. friend of sergei skripal have provided the bbc with the first detailed account of his life, including these personal pictures. here skripal is in the centre with his daughter yulia, just after her birth in 1984. both are 110w after her birth in 1984. both are now fighting for their lives. skripal was grew up listening to the world service on the radio. he joined the eairborne troop and became a charm beyondship army boxer. this was him a few years later with colleagues serving in central asia. when soviet troops went into afghanistan in 1979, he was among the first to go in. soon after he was talented spotted by the gru military intelligence. he served unde

this is the second major military operation in salisbury in the last 24 operation in salisbury in thet 2a hours. last night we saw them ta ke 2a hours. last night we saw them take away a police car from the hospital and today is now taking away ambulances which were potentially contaminated last sunday. everyone in this city is watching and waiting to see when this emergency will end and the nation is watching and waiting to find out who is behind this crime. ministers are being breached. today was the second meeting in a week of the emergency committee. this investigation is focused on making sure that we keep people safe as a priority, that's what the cobra beating was about. and also making sure that we collect all the evidence so that when it comes to attribution we will be absolutely clear where it should lead. the main cemetery is one of five sites under investigation. it has been closed to the public as officers examined the graves of mr skripal‘s wife and sun. today there was no change in the condition of him and his daughter — still critical and still in intensive care. richa

tom symonds, bbc news, salisbury.ndon says the plight of sergei skripal and his daughter causes serious concern. but they also accuse the media of fuelling an anti—russian campaign by creating the impression it was a planned operation by russian special services — something they categorically deny. in moscow, a spokesman for president putin described the situation as tragic. from moscow, here's steve rosenberg. it sounds chillingly familiar. russia under suspicion of planning and executing an attack 2000 miles away, in britain. in 2006, the target was former russian agent alexander litvinenko, murdered in london. the man britain believes poisoned him is andrei lugovoy. today, he dismissed claims that moscow had attacked sergei skripal as propaganda. translation: why do they say he was poisoned? perhaps he poisoned himself. or had a heart attack. you talk about propaganda, but what about alexander litvinenko. the enquiry in britain into his death found that you had poisoned him, probably on the orders of vladimir putin

in salisbury city centre and were found ina salisbury city centre and were found in a catatonic stateing arm in arm down the street. so counterterrorism police are taking over the investigation. it will be a joint investigation which will take place between the metropolitan police and another agency. they are appealing for anyone to come forward with any information they have. what we are seeing is a direction of travel towards what we saw in the alexander litvenenko case. it starts off as being a police investigation, counterterrorism police getting involved. of course the key thing that everybody is still waiting for is the toxicology. what is it? what is the substance that caused sergei skripal and his daughter so quickly to become so very unwell. with the network have been involved unofficially from the beginning or is this a new, is than coming into something new? i think gradual involvement. first of all you would have had the local police and the involvement of specialists when it became concerned about what sort of substance was involved. support from the south east counterter

after salisbury, the west sees moscow as a threat. moscow made it clear, britain and america see things the same way. how certain are you that the russian state was behind the attack in salisbury? there has been enough there to not only convince the united states, but about 25 other countries which have taken similar actions. there is enough evidence to believe that the russian state was behind this action in salisbury. america has expelled 60 russian diplomats, part of this coordinated international action. what signal does that send to moscow, do you think? you cannot use a military grade nerve agent on the streets of salisbury, against a british citizen and his daughter, without a response. this is an expression of outrage at what happened on the soil of the united kingdom. for the united states, was the salisbury poisoning a watershed moment? the malign activity, the disruptive nature of russia on the international stage has been to the detriment of a lot of other countries, and there comes a point in time where you have to take a

duncan kennedy is in salisbury.ll rememberjust over two weeks ago public health england were telling people who have been to the restau ra nt telling people who have been to the restaurant and the pub to wash their clothes, take them to the dryclean 01’ clothes, take them to the dryclean or bag them. they have hardened up that advice and say if people had gone to those two establishments and you haven't washed your clothes, you should do so immediately and that is the word they used and the people with dry—cleaning, don't take it to the dry cleaner, call the council, they will come and take those clothes away and destroy them. that is the advice being given. people will be compensated. they say while there is no immediate health risk, it is possible but unlikely that any substance that has come into contact with clothing or belongings could still be presents in minute amounts and therefore contaminate your skin. even though we are nearly three weeks into this incident, public health england are still advising people

and it's actually only eight miles from salisbury.orton down is responsible for this nerve agent? i don't know, i don't know, i don't have evidence of anything having been used. as britain continues to investigate the chemical attack, the foreign office dismissed this latest russian account as absolute nonsense with not an ounce of truth in it. a spokesperson said it's just another futile attempt by the russian state to divert the story away from the facts that russia has acted in flagrant breach of its international obligations. james robbins, bbc news. meanwhile, voting is taking place in russia's presidential election. incumbent vladimir putin, who is seeking another six—year—term, cast his ballot a short time ago. he's running against seven other candidates. the first results are expected this evening. a group of mps says that the government should consider the possibility of delaying when we leave the eu, if complex issues remain unresolved. the exiting the eu committee says more time should be allowed if a detailed and comprehen

daniel sandford, many thanks with the latest in salisbury. today, the united kingdom will leave the european union and enter a transition period. to mark the date, the prime minster toured all four nations of the uk, promising to make brexit a success for everyone and saying that leaving the eu would mean extra money for the nhs and schools. but she also refused to rule out tax rises to help fund the nhs in the years to come. labour says that time is running out to negotiate a good deal with the eu, as our political editor laura kuenssberg reports. north, south, east and west. a year left on our planned journey out of the european union. it will change the country, every corner of it. the prime minister hasn't exactly wowed everyone with her handling of brexit so far. so can she turn the page? if you think about the children i have seen here at this school, it's about their future. we want to ensure that we get the deal that's right for the whole of the united kingdom, because there's a bright future out there for us. we want to grasp the opp

kathryn stanczyszyn is in salisbury. various new lines this morning. look at that question of traces in the zizzi restaurant, where does that take us? this afternoon marks exactly seven days since sergei and yulia skripal were found slumped on the bench behind me in the centre of salisbury. this is one of the five locations that the charities have been focusing on. but some of that activity intensified at the zizzi restaurant not far from here, a couple of streets away, last night. there is a large barrier in place over the entire frontage of that restaurant while that work has been going on, but the bbc understands that now small traces of a nerve agent used in the attack against the skripals has been found in that restaurant. there is no indication that anyone else there has been affected the moment, that anyone there was necessarily involved. but it is a key development in this crucial fact of the timeline, that is what the authorities are desperate to establish. when exactly the skripals we re establish. when exactly the skripals were exposed to th

they collapsed in salisbury at the weekend. was suspect it had been used in the incident over the weekend that caused the illness of these people. but as we heard earlierfrom home affairs correspondent we may not get affairs correspondent we may not get a slice details about the substance but just a slice details about the substance butjust some information about its general character. we expect mark rowley to emerge any moment and we will come back to that straightaway when that happens. this is bbc news at five — the headlines: new images of sergei skripal who remains critically ill in hospital. police are about to reveal more about the substance used in the suspected poisoning of the former russian agent. the chancellor urges the eu to include financial markets in any future trade deal after brexit — but the president of the european council, donald tusk, says the uk cannot have a ‘pix and mix approach‘ to negotiations. a teenager goes on trial — accused of planting a bomb on a london underground train during rush hour last

he referred to the great cathedral city of salisbury, and i share his view on the city of salisbury,s, and i thank also the member of parliament for salisbury, who is with me on the front bench, for his consideration and support over the past four days. yes, i can reassure the honourable gentleman and the house that the police and emergency services have the necessary resources . services have the necessary resources. that is always one of my first question is, and they reassuring on that. on his point about keeping the house updated, of course i will, and i thank him for his consideration and understanding that there may be limits to that but, where i can, i will take the opportunity to come here and discuss it with the house, partly because of the very severity of this situation. i recognised the need to do so wherever possible. members are rightly keen to find out what is happening. he also referred to the sanctions bill, and we are of course engaging with the members of parliament who are proposing additional amendments. there have already been amendments that reflect the sort of

the headlines at 11pm: the european council backs britain over the salisbury nerve agent attack, agreeing that the only plausible explanation is that russia is responsible. the police officer who was exposed to the nerve agent attack is released from hospital, saying his life will never be the same again. one year on from the westminster bridge attack, a memorial is lit to remember all those affected by last year's terrorism in the capital. coming up on newsnight, we will have more on bullying in the house of commons. we will hear about the staff member who complained about the behaviour of an mp, only to find relu cta nce the behaviour of an mp, only to find reluctance among other mps to take action against one of their own. good evening and welcome to bbc news. the president of the european council, donald tusk, has tonight said leaders agree with the uk that russia was highly likely responsible for the salisbury nerve agent attack. at a summit in brussels today, theresa may had urged other eu leaders to back her in the row with russia about the poisoning of former spy sergei skripal an

european leaders agreed it's highly likely russia was responsible for the attack in salisbury. the prime minister has warned russia poses a real and present danger. it's clear that the russian threat does not respect borders and indeed the incident in salisbury was part of a pattern of russian aggression against europe and its near neighbours. here, the police officer exposed to the nerve agent is released from hospital, saying his life will never be the same again. with doctors warning the other victims of the attack may never fully recover, we'll be asking whether theresa may has managed to get the european support she's been seeking. also tonight. a looming trade war, as president trump announces plans to impose tariffs on $60 billion worth of goods from china. don't want to waste too much batteries. living in relative poverty — we spend time with three families struggling to make ends meet. out with the old passport after brexit — but the new one is likely to be made not here, but in france. and we catch up with the family who are trying to go ten days without any single—us

they were found slumped on a bench in salisbury.id this and what motive. russia has a track record on this. i was head of the foreign office at the time of the litvinenko poisoning. we got no cooperation at all from russia. the prime suspect was taken back to moscow and is now in the russian parliament. i hope the russians will help the investigation. there is a great deal of suspicion of a state hand in this. just before i go to heidi, going back to the litvinenko poisoning, was the response from russia that you had then in the initial days, like the response you are hearing now in response to this incident? it was straightforward denial, as far as i can remember it. the suspect was back in russia quickly. farfrom being willing to extradite him to face trial here, he found a seat in the russian parliament. the offer of help with the investigation, i do not remember that being the case. heidi blake, the track record is something you have been investigating, isn't it? yes, that is right, my team up at buzzfeed news has spent years in

samples from the scene in salisbury we re samples from the scene in salisbury were analysed at the portondetermined that it came from a rare class of nerve agents known as novichok. novichok are identifiable and new and deadly poison. the use of them in the uk is sending a strong message and it is therefore very surprising that they are being used. novichoks are a class of agents developed during the cold war in the 19705 and 19805, they can be eight times more toxic than other agents like vx. they were designed to be ha rd to detect like vx. they were designed to be hard to detect and to get through defences like chemical protection suits. the crucial thing is that these agents were only developed by russia. novichoks were top—secret, but an insider revealed details of the programme at the end of the cold war. now, living in america, he told the bbc tonight why he spoke out. war. now, living in america, he told the bbc tonight why he spoke outlj thought that i was involved in a criminal enterprise. i came to the conclusion that chemical weapons are not normal weapons against the armies,

there are many lines of investigation going on in salisbury at the moment.his is the part where the benches that they were found on last sunday afternoon collapsed. —— on last sunday afternoon, collapse. several incident units have been set up. earlier, we saw some protective gear being taken out. sutent gas masks being moved around. we know there is activity going on. we still know that the cemetery on london road, that is still barricaded off, and there is a forensic tent over the grave of mr skripal‘s wife and son. that is still being searched, so son. that is still being searched, so investigative line still being undertaken here this afternoon. catherine, thank you. to stay with us on catherine, thank you. to stay with us on bbc news, because as those lines develop, and there was a lot going on, we will keep you up—to—date with events taking place in salisbury. we stay there for now, where there had been calls for politicians to stop making appearances on the kremlin — sponsored tv station in russia today. labour's shadow chancellor john mcdonnell has b