Novichok locations ‘open for business’ says Home Secretary Sajid Javid
Written by News on 08/07/2018
Salisbury and Amesbury are “open for business”, the home secretary said as he urged people to visit the Wiltshire locations where four people have been poisoned by a nerve agent.
Touring the key places affected by the novichok attack, Sajid Javid said the county was a “beautiful part of the country to visit”.
“If you want a good day out, why not come down and show your support at the same time as having fun with your family,” he added.
:: Significant police activity at novichok victim’s home
For anyone concerned about getting close to the places where Sergei and Yulia Skripal, and Dawn Sturgess and Charlie Rowley were poisoned, Mr Javid said the “risk to the public remains very low”.
“That is the clear advice of Public Health England, (and) it’s the clear advice of Sally Davies, the chief medical officer,” he said.
Asked by Sky News’ defence correspondent, Alistair Bunkall, whether police had found the “container or a receptacle” they had been searching for, Mr Javid said officers were “still working to work out exactly how these two individuals (Mr Rowley and Ms Sturgess) came across the nerve agent”.
“We don’t want to jump to any conclusions,” he added, saying there were a “number of working theories”.
Officers require the “time and space they need to do their work”, he said.
Mr Javid said the police’s “working hypothesis” was that the poisoning of Mr Rowley and Ms Sturgess was “connected” to the poisoning of the Skripals in March, which he described as a “barbaric inhuman act by the Russian state”.
Asked whether secrecy had been prioritised over public safety, he said: “There is no evidence at this point that the two individuals hurt by this incident visited any of the areas that the Skripals visited.
“That said, I think everyone would want to listen to the advice of the professionals and make sure we take some precautions.”
Mr Javid said he was “confident” that officers would eventually “get to the bottom” of what had happened.
There are no further plans for sanctions against Russia, he said.
(c) Sky News 2018: Novichok locations ‘open for business’ says Home Secretary Sajid Javid
