I have to tell you now that no such undertaking has been received

​There seems to be a widespread view that the Salisbury nerve agent attack came about as part of Putin’s nationalistic pre-election agenda. This agenda is all about showing how western interests are continually seeking to diminish Russia’s autonomy. Perhaps. The flip side of this is that it gives Theresa May a perfect opportunity to come across as robust, strong and err . . . stable. I suspect her poll ratings will go up after this incident. That leaves Corbyn in an awkward spot, and I’m not sure in response to May’s Commons statement on Monday that I would have taken such a partisan tone. The issue of Russian funding of the Conservative Party might better have been tackled in a separate opposition day debate. I would have taken this opportunity to ask more questions about whether risk assessments have been carried out on other potential targets? Was this target still working for British intelligence or being paid for by the British state (what was he living on? How did he manage to pay £260,000 cash for a house when he’d just been in prison for several years?); what thought is being given to the consequences of retaliatory action? Does May really believe she can out tough Putin? Sadly, some opposition MPs sounded like they wanted to out tough May. One Labour MP even suggested that the Commons authorities should pull the plug on Russia Today broadcasting debates from the cockpit of our democracy. There is a danger after events like this that some may lose touch with reality.

PART TWO

Well, confronted by our idiotic Foreign Secretary, the Russian ambassador had nothing to say. Although no-one yet has said what he actually did say. So the verdict has been brought in: they're guilty. There'll be no pleading the 5th here! In response to May's statement to the Commons today, I thought Corbyn did a better job. Listening to his comments, he asked a number of pertinent questions - around nine in total. May didn't attempt to answer six of them, and two other answers were somewhat general. Here is my run down of the exchange, a service not provided in the media:

​ 1.    If the Government believe that it is still a possibility that Russia negligently lost control of a military-grade nerve agent, what action is being taken through the OPCW with our allies? I welcome the fact that the police are working with the OPCW.
Answer: no answer

2.    Has the Prime Minister taken the necessary steps under the chemical weapons convention to make a formal request for evidence from the Russian Government under article IX(2)?
Answer: none specific to this question. May’s response was much more general:
The right hon. Gentleman raised a number of questions about the nerve agent that had been used. He asked whether we were putting together an international coalition to call on Russia to reveal the details of its chemical weapons programme to the OPCW. That is indeed what we did. We gave the Russian Government the opportunity, through the démarche that my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary delivered to the Russian ambassador in London earlier this week, to do just that. They have not done so.

3.    How has she responded to the Russian Government’s request for a sample of the agent used in the Salisbury attack to run their own tests?
Answer: no answer

4.    Has high-resolution trace analysis been run on a sample of the nerve agent, and has that revealed any evidence as to the location of its production or the identity of its perpetrators?
Answer: no answer

5.    Can the Prime Minister update the House on what conversations, if any, she has had with the Russian Government? While suspending planned high-level contacts, does she agree that is essential to retain a robust dialogue with Russia, in the interests of our own and wider international security?
Answer: no answer

6.  Can the Prime Minister outline what discussions she has had with our partners in the European Union, NATO and the UN and what willingness there was to take multilateral action?
Answer: The right hon. Gentleman talked about getting an international consensus together. As I said, I have spoken to Chancellor Merkel, President Trump and President Macron. Others have also expressed their support. Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary-General, said: “We stand in solidarity with our Allies in the United Kingdom” and “Those responsible—both those who committed the crime and those who ordered it—must face appropriately serious consequences.” The NATO Council has expressed deep concern at the first offensive use of a nerve agent on alliance territory since NATO’s foundation, and allies agreed the attack was a clear breach of international norms and agreements. Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council, said: “I express my full solidarity with PM @theresa_may in the face of the brutal attack inspired, most likely, by Moscow. I’m ready to put the issue on next week’s #EUCO agenda.” We will be doing that.

7.  While the poisonings of Sergei and Yulia Skripal are confronting us today, what efforts are being made by the Government to reassess the death of Mr Skripal’s wife, Liudmila, who died in 2012, and the deaths of his elder brother and son in the past two years?
Answer: no answer

8.  Yesterday Nikolai Glushkov, a Russian exile who was close friends with the late oligarch Boris Berezovsky, was found dead in his London home. What reassurances can the Prime Minister give to citizens of Russian origin living in Britain that they are safe here?
Answer: no answer

9.  Corbyn raised the role of corrupt Russian money, etc. in the UK, an issue which Parliament will address in forthcoming legislation.
Answer: The right hon. Gentleman asked about the corrupt elites and money going through London. As I said in my statement, led by the National Crime Agency, we will continue to bring all the capabilities of UK law enforcement to bear against serious criminals and corrupt elites. There is no place for these people or their money in our country, and that work is ongoing.